Taken care of
by zeusfluff
Summary: "I know you'll take care of her Jack." Jack and Kate have been on the island for 5 years. The island takes Kate's life just after the birth of their daughter Megan. But when she walks out of the jungle looking confused and disheveled a week later, Jack has to wonder: Was she really gone to begin with? *This is AU.*
1. Taken care of

**Taken care Of**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. Date Started: 5/17/15. Date Finished: 5/18/15. Summary: "I know you'll take care of her Jack." Jack and Kate have been on the island for 5 years. The island takes Kate's life just after the birth of their daughter Megan. But when she walks out of the jungle looking confused and disheveled a week later, Jack has to wonder: Was she really gone to begin with? *This is AU.*

* * *

He didn't understand. She'd been doing so well. Kate was pale but she managed a smile up at Jack.

"I know you'll take care of her Jack."

Shaking his head in denial, he grabbed for her hand. A watery smile adorned his lips.

"You're going to be just fine. You and Megan are going to be fine."

Denial was what he was best at sometimes. He let it in especially when he knew someone was going to die. Not giving up on her was his only hope. His pleading eyes stared into Juliet's blue ones.

"They'll make it through this right? Megan and Kate?"

They were his family now. This island had taken so much from him, but he would give his very last breath to save the woman he loved and his little girl. Scanning Juliet's eyes, once more Jack pushed a strand of hair away from Kate's sweaty forehead.

"Jack I'm sorry. But you know how this is going to end. I know you don't believe in miracles. But Kate got 6 extra weeks of life she shouldn't have."

Jack's eyes glazed over momentarily and then determination crossed them.

"Would Kate and the baby have a better chance if we did a C-section rather than have her deliver naturally?"

Juliet's gaze softened more. She'd done everything in her power over the last 9 months to help Kate survive.

"She has less than a 5 percent chance of surviving Jack."

Jack could tell Juliet was fighting the tears that were threatening to cascade down her cheeks at any moment. Hard-set determination lined Jack's face, and he shook his head no.

"I'm _not giving up_ on her. They both deserve a fighting chance. Now are we going to give her that epidural or not?"

Jack hadn't meant his last sentence to sound so sharp and a bit annoyed, he was just on edge and tired. They'd been at this for almost 2 days. Juliet silently nodded her head and got what she was looking for. Helping Kate sit up and pulling her into a hug, he could see she was scared.

"What's going to happen to Megan?"

His heart sunk at the sound of Kate's words. However, stubbornness and determination kept lining his features. He _wasn't_ going to lose the two things he loved most.

"She'll be out in a minute. Everything's going to be fine."

Jack felt if he kept repeating that to himself enough everything would be fine. But he knew the cold hard facts that were in front of him; women who got pregnant on the island die. That one sentence kept running through his mind like a war drum getting louder and louder as the minutes passed. He heard Kate hiss and felt her tense slightly in his embrace. He didn't like hearing her cry like this. It absolutely tore him into a million shreds.

"I know it hurts Kate. Just keep breathing. It'll all be over soon ok?"

Heart sinking even further, Jack mentally beat himself up for his last sentence. _It'll all be over soon._ The outcome he wished for was for his daughter to be healthy and that Kate would get to see her, to hold her. Swallowing, he knew it would be a few minutes before the drugs took effect. It was 25 agonizingly long minutes before Kate felt no pain whatsoever. Juliet tried to give her a warm smile, but it faltered.

"How are you feeling Kate?"

Blurry-eyed she smiled tiredly up at her and then held Jack's left hand.

"Doesn't hurt anymore."

Sighing in relief, Jack was happy she wasn't in so much pain. Kissing her hand, he took a seat on a stool next to her. As Juliet did her work, she tried to make happy conversation with the couple in front of her.

"So how did you come up with the name Megan?"

Kate gave a soft and tired laugh and looked at Jack, then back to Juliet.

"I've always thought that if I had a daughter someday I would name her Megan. My mom once told me that she had picked Megan for my name, but when she saw me right after I was born, she stuck with Kate."

Juliet managed a sincere smile as wailing began to fill the room. Jack was in awe at the squirming pink and wrinkly baby in Juliet's arms. It'd been quite some time since he'd been in a room during a live birth. More than 6 years ago if he remembered correctly. They'd been on the island for 5 years now. The chance of ever being rescued was almost slim to none. Pulling some gloves on over his hands, Jack began cleaning Megan's nose and mouth. She only wailed louder. Carefully cutting the umbilical cord, he placed Megan in a blanket and into Kate's arms. Tears stung her eyes as she looked at their daughter.

"She's beautiful Jack. She looks like _you._ "

Jack gave a chuckle and traced Megan's delicate eyebrows.

"Well, her lips might be mine, even her nose. But her eyebrows are definitely her mother's."

Kate's eyes fluttered and then they shut. He gritted his teeth at the sound of the heart monitor off to the side of the table. He'd braced himself, he knew she was gone. But just because the heart monitor began to flat line didn't mean he couldn't get her heart beating again. Denial consumed him now and he was frantically trying to fix what had already been done.

"Come on Kate; breathe. You can do this."

Juliet wrapped a hand around Jack's left wrist and shook her head at him.

"Jack there isn't anything we can do. She's gone. Her heart gave out."

He wouldn't and couldn't accept what was happening.

"No Juliet. You promised me! You promised us that she was going to be just fine! You said that you could make her better. She wouldn't die you said…"

Juliet paused and thought about what Jack said. Wringing her hands and then folding them in her lap she frowned once more.

"You misunderstood me Jack. Kate was a miracle in itself. It wasn't the island that was helping her, it was the injections. Since she has been the only woman on this island on record to reach her third trimester this is essentially uncharted waters. The last time I tested her blood, her immune system was starting to turn on itself. I didn't promise you that Kate would get better. I only said that because her condition hadn't deteriorated in her second trimester and she was healthy. But the closer she got to her third trimester the worse she got. I've never seen a mother fight so hard."

Jack's eyes stung. Megan was still cradled in Kate's arms. _How was he supposed to take care of this tiny baby by himself?_ Jack let his head sink down on the table next to Kate's and he began to sob. He hadn't noticed Juliet had left him alone for some privacy. He stared at the ceiling and then began to yell at it.

"Are you happy? You've taken everything from me!"

He knew the island wouldn't let him die, but it wouldn't let him leave either.

* * *

One Week Later

"Come on Megan. I know you're hungry. Please eat something for daddy."

He sighed as the fussy infant continued to whine more.

"Need some help?"

A tired smile crossed his face as Juliet stood just outside his tent.

"Thank-you. I haven't been able to get her to eat a thing this morning."

Juliet stepped inside Jack's tent and took a seat next to him. Scooping Megan into her arms she gave him a warm smile. But sadness lie beneath it. Grief tinged his features, but he hid it well. He had to be brave. For his daughter. Taking a water bottle Jack had fashioned into a baby bottle she smiled down at the pink bundle. Tiny arms flailed as Juliet tried to get Megan to eat. Succeeding in getting her to take a drink, Juliet turned to Jack.

"Where did you find food for her?"

Jack shook his head and smirked slightly.

"Sawyer's stash."

The two were interrupted by the sound of trees rustling behind Jack's tent. Jack and Juliet both stood up and looked outside the tent in time to see a confused and disheveled Kate emerge from the jungle. Her hair was still matted to her head and she was smudged with dirt.

"Jack? What happened to me?"

Jack's heart sunk. Anything was possible on this island. Maybe Kate hadn't died after all. Maybe he was getting a second chance to fix things. After all, he'd found the one person that could fix him. They fixed each other.

To Be Continued…


	2. What Happened?

**Chapter 2: What Happened?**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own Megan. Date Started: 5/19/15. Date Finished: 5/24/15.

* * *

"Jack? What happened to me?"

The words rang inside his head like an alarmingly loud dinner bell. Jack rose from his makeshift bed and reached a hand out to a struggling and wobbly Kate.

"Here. Sit down. I'll go get you some water. When I get back: I want you to explain what happened to you from the beginning. The whole thing."

Kate was silent as she sat down on their bed, all the while watching Juliet feed her daughter. She thought the better of stroking her daughter's cheek with her dirtied index finger. Her mouth hung open slightly as she became more frightened, tears beginning their descent down her face. She didn't hide her tears from Jack when he came back with some water.

"Drink some of this. It'll make you feel better. Now what happened to you?"

Her mouth hung open for a moment after she put the water down on the sand next to the bed. She nervously stuttered, trying to get her words out.

"I don't know. The last thing I remember was you cleaning Megan up right after Juliet took her out of me. You uh, cut her umbilical cord and wrapped her in a blanket, placing her in my arms. After that, it was dark. There was no sound. The next thing I know is I'm waking up lying in a heap under a large tree about a quarter mile in from the beach. Everything was blurry at first. Then I saw someone. Once my eyes became clear again I saw who it was. I saw… I saw your dad Jack…"

She burst into tears again and her head sunk into her dirt-streaked hands. Uncovering her face, she looked at the angry wear marks on her wrists. Kate watched as Jack set Megan down inside the cradle that Aaron used to sleep in when he was a baby. She was afraid of what she saw out there in the jungle, but not knowing how she ended up there and lying unconscious under a strange looking tree scared her more. Jack's large and frightened eyes met and matched her own.

"You… You saw my father in the jungle?"

Nodding Kate fingered the cradle and gulped in the fresh salty air.

"Yes. He said that I needed to give you a message…"

Eyebrows furrowed in confusion Jack tried to wrap his mind around these newest series of events.

"What message?"

She winced and shook her head as Jack began cleaning the dirt from her face. Minor scrapes and cuts lined her face, but other than being shook up, she looked fine.

"It was more of a warning."

Jack cleaned out a cut just above Kate's left eye and stopped. Worry was now turning into impatience. Kate knew how bad Jack's temper was.

"What kind of warning?"

Holding still, she looked towards the tree line haunted eyes scanning trying to find what she saw. She'd seen too much on this island over the last 5 years.

"He said that something bad was coming, but he wouldn't say what it was. Only that our children would be in grave danger. He even gave me their names. Including Megan. Cody and Grace."

A pit was forming in Jack's stomach; he felt sick and wanted to retch in the sand outside his tent. _Could the man wearing his dad's face see the future?_ It was impossible. However, Jack knew that everything he'd seen happen here on the island was the exact opposite of impossible, they were possible.

"How do you know he wasn't lying to you Kate?"

The anger was simmering there just below the surface of calm and was about to boil over and explode. Megan let out a frightened wail and Juliet came back into the tent and reached for Megan inside the cradle.

"Jack. Calm down. You're scaring the baby."

Jack's shoulders slumped as he sunk down on the bed next to Kate.

"I'm sorry I got angry. I just can't believe anything that _thing_ who calls himself my father says."

Kate's teeth were chattering and her face was flush. Worry once again tinged Jack's features.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Juliet rocked Megan, looked between Kate and Jack and then back to him again.

"She has a fever Jack. Check her sutures. She may have an infection setting in."

Megan's cries had quieted and she had fallen asleep again. Juliet placed her in the cradle and then adjusted the blankets serving as barriers/curtains over the side and front of the tent.

"Kate look at me. Stay with me."

Juliet pulled back Kate's shirt only to reveal a long and angry looking red line that ran down her stomach. Some of the stitching was coming out; some of it had flecks of dirt in them. Teeth chattering, Kate bit her lip as Jack did his best to clean out the dirty stitches. As he cleaned out the rest of the stitches, he smiled and remembered the first time he saw Megan's tiny foot pressed up against the very place he was fixing the stitches. He became serious as he took another piece of aloe and wiped away some of the blood. Looking to Juliet, he could see her shaking her head.

"Jack this is going to take some time. There's a lot of oozing here that may take a little more time and supplies than we've got to fix. I can make it to the medical station and back before dark."

Cautiously nodding, Jack gave her a worried look.

"Alright. But take Sayid and Sawyer with you."

Juliet turned and left the tent, leaving Jack alone with a bewildered Kate. Her eyes went wide and she tried sitting up.

"Jack? Where's the baby? Where's Megan?"

Kate was feverish and confused. Megan was where she was supposed to be.

"It's alright Kate. She's asleep in the cradle. She's safe."

She frantically grabbed for Jack's arm, and he noticed she couldn't focus her eyes on him.

"Jack I can't see either of you. It's dark."

This made Jack very nervous. More nervous than seeing the Black smoke monster. He tried reassuring Kate and placed a cool cloth on her forehead with water.

"It's probably just a temporary side effect of your fever. Once I'm able to bring down the fever, things should return to normal."

Jack hoped he was right.

To Be Continued…


	3. The Warning

**Chapter 3: The Warning**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own Megan. Date Started: 5/25/15. Date Finished: 5/27/15.

* * *

 _An hour ago…_

Kate gasped and woke to the sound of tropical birds chirping in the distance. Her eyes blurry and unfocused she tried to make out the green fuzziness above her head. Once her eyes focused she realized that she was lying flat on her back under a creepy and strange looking tree. It's branches were all twisted and snarled and if you looked at them just right, it looked as if it could grab you. She quickly turned her head when she heard bushes and leaves crunching under someone's feet. At first she could see nothing, only heard a voice.

"Megan's a beautiful baby Kate. I'm glad I got to see my granddaughter come into the world."

Green eyes took in a tall man dressed in tan pants and a blue striped shirt, it was dirty and worn. He had striking blue eyes. The smile looked like Jack's. The one between a smirk and a smile. Swallowing, Kate scooted farther back from the man in front of her.

"I know who you are. Get away from me."

Shaking his head, the tall man kept smirking and laughed slightly, leaning against a smaller tree at least 30 yards away.

"I mean you no harm Kate. I see you've got the same mistrust as my son. Did Jack ever tell you he found my empty coffin in the caves?"

Kate's eyes widened further and she shook her head.

"You were there when I gave birth?"

The blue-eyed man nodded and kept smirking.

"Why would I miss my granddaughter's birth? And please Kate, call me Christian. Small talk aside, I think it's best if we get down to business. I came to give you a warning: something bad is coming. Megan, Cody, and Grace are all in grave danger."

Confused, Kate attempted to sit upright when a wave of nausea overcame her, forcing her to lie back down again.

"Who's Cody and Grace?"

Christian kept the strange smirk on his face, which didn't look a thing like Jack's anymore. Kate knew now that the man standing in front of her was _not_ Jack's father. He was something _else._

"Your son and daughter."

Taking a gulp of air, Kate noticed Christian was gone. Eyes widening in fear, she pulled herself to her feet with a tree branch above her head. Pain ripped through her stomach and she felt something tear on it. Crying out, she braced the tree branch for a minute. Gaining more strength, she forced herself to go forward. She could hear the ocean, so she knew she couldn't be far in from the beach. Breathing deeply, holding her stomach, and blindly grabbing for tree branches along the way she finally stumbled out of the underbrush and onto the beach. There she found Jack. What could she tell him about what she saw out in the jungle? Why was she here? She didn't remember much from after blacking out. She needed answers.

To Be Continued…

A/N: So, I tried to tie everything back together with what Kate said in chapter 2.


	4. Healing and processing

**Chapter 4: Healing and processing**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Grace. Date Started: 5/27/15. Date Finished: 5/30/15.

* * *

Calming hands met her screaming form as she woke for the third night in a row from another nightmare.

"Hey. It's alright. Just lie back. It was just a nightmare. Nothing is going to hurt you here."

It took Kate a moment to register that it was Jack beside her and not something else. She was breathing so hard she thought she was about to start hyperventilating. Seeing Jack's silhouette from the campfire just outside their tent she relaxed.

"That's it Kate. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Do you want to talk about it?"

Kate snatched up her water bottle and took a large swig from it. Everything from the last few days was either hazy or almost non-existent.

"It's fading. My nightmare. All I can remember is dirt under my fingernails and something tied around my wrists. The stitching in my stomach was coming apart and some of it on the inside was doing the same…"

Jack was very concerned now. These nightmares of hers were becoming serious, and he wasn't quite sure what he could do about them. He remembered the nightmares that she'd had right before Megan was born. But he'd known they were a normal and strange part of pregnancy.

"Listen to me Kate. These are just nightmares. They can't hurt you. Now whatever happened to you we'll figure it out. Together."

Kate nodded but wasn't convinced by Jack's words. They were meant to comfort not scare her. She looked at the bandages adorning her wrists and winced, remembering the rough and raw exposed skin that lie beneath it. Megan began to whimper inside the cradle a few feet away. Jack put a hand on Kate's shoulder and smiled.

"I'll get her. You take it easy."

She relished the moment's she spent with her daughter. Nursing her gave Kate time to get to know her. Megan's little arms flailed as Jack placed her into Kate's arms.

"Here let me help you."

Kate was used to doing things on her own, but she had learned to trust Jack with all she was worth. Right now, she needed all the support she could get from him. The next few weeks weren't going to be easy on either of them. She was amazed at how well Jack had adjusted to being a father. It was only three years ago that he'd told her that he would make a terrible father, and now here he was, a natural. She'd always felt safe with him. No one else had made her feel that same way.

"Wait until she latches onto you. There we go. She's suckling like a pro now. If she falls asleep, tickle her feet."

She winced and then looked down at Megan for a brief moment, then back up at Jack.

"How do you know all this?"

Jack chuckled and gently ran a hand over his daughter's tiny head.

"I spent a couple of years working with an OBGYN. This was before I chose my specialty and became a spinal surgeon."

He could see slight doubt written over every inch of Kate's features but he was there for her.

"What if I don't get the hang of nursing her? Then what?"

Running a finger along Megan's left cheek, he listened to her coo.

"I think you're being too hard on yourself Kate. These things take time. I'm here to help you. If every new mother had a hand book on how to nurse their infants it would be relatively simple. But it doesn't work that way. You learn by experience."

Jack earned a slightly more confident smile from Kate.

"In that case Jack, your daughter already has your appetite."

Giving his signature smirk Jack stroked his daughter's head again. The couple froze when they heard a strange roar coming from the jungle. Jack was now glad that he'd put up blanket's up for privacy. Part of him was curious about the noise he'd just heard, while the other half told him to stay the hell away from it.

To Be Continued…

A/N: So this is part of the AU where they never have seen the Black smoke monster. I'm going to pull out some stops in the next chapter. Bring tissues!


	5. Disappearance

**Chapter 5: Disappearance**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Grace. Date Started: 5/31/15. Date Finished: 5/31/15. A/N: Get ready to grab some tissues. Nothing too drastic though. I promise.

* * *

"Jack. Help me find the baby!"

Startled, Jack opened his eyes and sat up stock straight. Confused at first, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. His confusion quickly dissipated when he got up only to find the cradle in front of him empty. Grabbing her by the shoulders, he looked straight into her green eyes.

"Kate look at me. Maybe she's down the beach a ways with Sun and Jin."

A familiar voice made Kate whirl around on her heel.

"Megan's not with me Jack."

Jack's confidence fell a couple of notches as he saw Sun and Jin outside their tent. Kate rushed out of their tent and stomped a few feet ahead of Jack. Running after her, he caught up. She was now having a conversation with Juliet. Sawyer was with her.

"I can't find Megan…"

Juliet could see Kate was trying to hold herself together.

"Ok, let's take this one step at a time. Where did you see her last?"

Sometimes Kate got irritated at how calm Juliet could be with something as panic inducing as this situation. Letting a few tears slip from her eyes, she gestured back towards her and Jack's tent.

"Uh, she was asleep in the cradle at the foot of the bed. I was going to change her and then feed her. Was it _them_ Juliet? Tell me the truth."

Someone behind Jack shouted towards Juliet.

"It was _her!_ She used to be one of _them!"_

Sawyer was quick to come to Juliet's defense.

"Now why are y'all blaming her? She had nothin' to do with this. I'll help ya find her freckles."

As much as Sawyer was a pain in the ass sometimes, Kate knew that he meant well. He did have a soft spot for kids. Aaron liked him well enough.

"Thank-you Sawyer."

Sawyer gave Kate a warm smile and squeezed her shoulder.

"No need to thank me freckles. Where do you want to look first doc?"

Jack pointed up and down the beach.

"Everywhere Sawyer."

Sawyer didn't argue with Jack, but he was sarcastic.

"You got it daddy-o."

The dark look Jack shot towards Sawyer wiped the smile right off his face.  
"Ok. Where to?"

Jack pointed in the direction of the jungle.

"That way."

Something was telling Jack to look in the jungle. He wasn't sure if it was his natural fathering instincts or something else. But the feeling was _very_ strong. Kate pushed ahead of the group and didn't stop. She strained her ears to listen for any telltale sign of her baby. Jack stopped for a brief second and listened. He could hear faint wailing to the East of him.

"Daddy's coming Megan. Keep crying!"

He knew Megan couldn't answer back because she was too little, but she knew her father's voice. Following the direction of Megan's crying, he began to sprint. Kate followed and soon the group of four found themselves at the strange tree she'd described to Jack a few days before. Megan was screaming at the top of her lungs. Warily looking around, Jack leaned down and scooped the screaming little girl up into his arms.

"You're alright now. Shh. You're safe. Daddy's got you."

Looking around once more, he heard the trees and the bamboo begin to rustle in the wind, then whispering began to fill the air. Jack's blood seemed to freeze inside his veins as he saw the one person he thought he'd never see again.

"Hello Jack. I see you've found Megan."

At first Jack could only stare at the thing wearing his father's face.

" _You're not my father._ Why did you take Megan?"

Megan was eerily quiet in Jack's arm suddenly. He noticed that his _father_ had disappeared. Juliet hurriedly scooped Megan into her arms.

"Jack, she needs to be monitored for at least a couple of hours. I want to take her back to the medical station. You and Kate can come with me. The rest of you can go back to the beach."

The group dispersed, while Kate and Jack worriedly held hands following behind Juliet in a fast-paced jog. Jack felt a pit forming in the pit of his stomach. _Something was wrong._

To Be Continued…

A/N: Don't worry, everything will be explained in the next few chapters.


	6. Time Restraints

**Chapter 6: Time Restraints**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Grace. Date Started: 6/1/15. Date Finished: 6/2/15. Hope you will all enjoy! Thanks!

* * *

Jack was terrified. Megan was only 10 days old and she was in trouble. Right now, he was a doctor, being a dad came second. Megan was his responsibility. Juliet set Megan down on the exam table and unwrapped the blanket from around her. He could see Kate pacing, her chest heaving with worried breaths. She was holding it together, but by a thread. After about the twelfth time of passing him, he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her into his embrace.

"Hey. Everything's going to be ok. Megan's in good hands Kate. Juliet knows what she's doing. Have faith. Remember?"

Kate tore from Jack's arms and went to her baby's side who was still lying on the exam table. Tears were spilling over her cheeks once more as she placed a hand to stroke her daughter's head.

"Mama's here baby girl. Please tell me what's wrong."

Now Jack was barely holding it together himself. But every time Kate was hurt and cried, his heart shattered into a million pieces. Watching Kate interact with their too-still daughter made him realize how short life was. Kate sat down on a stool and watched as Juliet listened to Megan's chest. A lopsided smile adorned her lips, but Jack could hear the frown in her voice.

"She's breathing. But it's so shallow you wouldn't be able to hear it without the stethoscope."

Jack's eyes lit up as he went towards Juliet. She took the earpieces of the stethoscope and handed them to Jack. As he put the earpieces in his ears and listened, his eyes grew dull and a frown had formed on his lips.

"I don't think I understand. If she's not asleep then why isn't she responding?"

Juliet's eyes saddened a bit more. Jack hated when she pitied him.

"Jack I don't know."

The anger was simmering below the surface again, and Kate braced herself. Jack's temper when not in check got him into trouble. Instead of getting angry, a tear slipped down his cheek, and he swiped it away.

"Why isn't she crying anymore?"

Another question Juliet couldn't answer at the present moment. Something made her look at Megan's feet. Upon inspecting the heel of her right foot, she found a red/brownish insect bite on it. Taking a closer look with a magnifiying glass, her frown disappeared and replaced by a warm smile.

"She was bitten by a Medusa spider. They don't kill you. They just paralyze you. She'll be fine."

Jack felt as if he were going to be sick. This was one of his nightmares; finding out his own child was paralyzed. Swallowing the bile back down into his stomach, he looked Juliet in the eye.

"What part of her spine is affected?"

Juliet was taken aback by Jack's question. He hadn't heard her correctly.

"Jack, the paralytic agent from the spider doesn't attack the spinal column. It affects everything in the body. She'll be fine in about 8 hours. In the meantime, I'm going to start a line, get some fluids into her, and give her some oxygen. I'll put her in the incubator to keep her warm."

Jack turned away from Juliet for a brief moment and walked towards Kate. Taking her hand, they each walked out into the dimly lit hallway. In seconds he was hugging Kate so fiercely, she could scarcely breathe. His breath hitched as sobs wracked his entire body. This was only the second time in 5 years that she'd seen Jack cry like this. When he let go, Kate was breathless. Reaching a hand up to his left cheek, with her right hand she wiped away his tears.

"Megan's going to be ok Jack. She's just sleeping. We should be with her."

Jack's breath hitched once more and he nodded his head. Juliet said nothing as she saw Jack's red-rimmed eyes. She knew he'd been crying. But the thought of losing a child, or even getting a tough to hear diagnosis was sometimes much harder to take. Especially when it was your _own child._ But in Megan's case, it was neither. She was going to be all right. The couple took a set of stools and sat down in front of the incubator that Juliet had just set Megan. Now all they had to do was wait for the next 8 hours for Megan to take her first breath and let out a healthy cry. Jack had forgotten how many tubes and iv lines went into sick babies. He'd spent four months working in a NICU at Saint Sebastian's. He never set foot in it again after his rotation was done. Sometimes he still had nightmares about it. But he knew his little girl would be ok. She was a fighter.

To Be Continued…

A/N: So, what do you think?


	7. Waking up

**Chapter 7: Waking up**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody, and Grace. Date Started: 6/2/15. Date Finished: 6/3/15.

* * *

"How much longer until she wakes up Jack?"

Kate had become restless. Pacing the room like a caged animal. Jack patted the stool next to him and then looked up at the clock on the wall.

"Another couple of hours Kate. You should get a little rest."

Shaking her head Kate crossed her arms over her chest and planted herself on the stool next to Jack.

"No she needs me Jack. I'm not leaving her. She needs _us."_

Jack stuck a hand inside the incubator and ran a thumb over Megan's left foot. Glancing up at the monitors, he sighed.

"Did I ever tell you that I spent four months working in the NICU at St. Sebastian's?"

Kate furrowed her eyebrows at Jack and squeezed his free hand. Swallowing, she spoke.

"Uh no you didn't."

Jack continued to watch the monitors as he told Kate the story.

"Now I know how all the other parents in the NICU felt. Knowing that their babies were very sick and some weren't going to make it home. There was a little girl in that NICU that was born 2 months prematurely. Her name was Erin. She had a congenital heart defect. Nothing could be done for her. All I could do was change the tubing out for new one's when needed and check on her. Her parents were grateful for anything I could do for her. Every day I went in and was hopeful that things would turn around, but the more time I spent in there, those chances grew slimmer. She held on for two months and then she was gone. By the time I finished my rotation, 15 babies had gone home. However, there were others who didn't. I vowed never to step foot in there again. That last day I told myself that I was going into surgery. I could fix people that way. When Juliet said that Megan was paralyzed all I could think of was that I needed to fix what was happening to her. I didn't get the fact at first that her being paralyzed was temporary. I just want Megan to be healthy."

Jack was still very wary. Counting to five wasn't going to work forever. Megan was their miracle. This island had taken many things; it had ripped Kate away from him, and then given her back a week later. He couldn't explain that one. His mind kept going back to the man/thing that wore his father's face. _Why had he taken Megan?_ Kate squeezed Jack's hand in a comforting gesture as she watched the movement in the heated incubator.

"Jack, Megan's waking up."

Jack snapped out of his reverie and gave a smile that made his eyes crinkle. Juliet stood just behind him and looked inside the incubator.

"Ok, let's see how you're doing little one."

Both parents waited in anxious silence for Megan to cry. It was a few minutes before they heard a strong cry come forth from the tiny baby in the incubator. Another hour went by before Juliet began taking the monitors and tubing from Megan. After everything was put away, Juliet placed Megan into Kate's arms. Kate held back her tears and traced every feature on her daughter's face. Still worried, Kate turned her attention to Juliet.

"So she's ok?"

A smile crept to Juliet's lips as she nodded.

"You have nothing to worry about Kate. She's perfectly healthy."

Now all they had to do was protect her from the thing that looked like Jack's father. Jack approached Juliet with a frown.

"What was that thing out there in the jungle Juliet? The one who's pretending to be my father?"

The gaze Juliet gave Jack made him wish he didn't ask.

"I can't describe it. But we call it 'The black smoke monster.' "

To Be Continued…


	8. Back to the beach

**Chapter 8: Back to the beach**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody, and Grace. Date Started: 6/4/15. Date Finished: 6/5/15.

* * *

Jack had made a little sling to place Megan in out of a blanket from the plane. It was easier this way carrying her back to the beach. His eyes roamed over every one of her features, taking in the fact that she was indeed _alive._ He'd almost lost her today. Even though Megan was cradled inside the sling, he held her in his arms, supporting her entire body with both. Her tiny left arm snaked out of the sling as she scrunched up her face and began to cry. Sighing Jack knew that no amount of rocking would get her to go back to sleep. She needed to be changed. Jack kept trying to console her though.

"Hey there, I know you're probably uncomfortable. We'll get you into something clean and dry when we get back to the beach."

All three of them stopped in their tracks when they heard rustling in the bushes. Kate smiled when she saw it was only Walt's dog Vincent. Vincent barked and moved beyond the bushes and back onto the beach. Following him through the thick bushes what was left of the survivors came out of their tents to greet them. Even Sawyer came to greet them. But his main reason was to welcome Juliet back.

"Welcome back doc. Glad to see Megan is all right."

Kate gave Sawyer a bemused look and shook her head dark curls ruffling along the way.

"Sawyer. That's the first time you called my daughter by her name and not 'nugget head.' Thank-you."

Sawyer had always given nicknames to everybody. That was just who he was. Even Juliet. Some of them weren't very nice in the past but he was slowly changing his attitude.

"Anything for you freckles."

Jack and Kate slowly walked back to their tent together. It would be sunset soon. Kate knew it because the sky was turning pink. _Had they really been gone all day?_ Jack had to keep an eye on Kate. He knew that soon she would be going through Post-partum depression. She was going to need his help getting through it. As he changed Megan, he decided to start a conversation with Kate.

"When I get her down for the night I want to have a look at those sutures. Make sure they are healing properly and there is no more infection."

Kate grew quiet as she sat down on their bed. She'd been having nightmares again, she just hadn't told Jack.

"I've been having nightmares again Jack."

As he swaddled Megan inside her blanket, he placed her inside the cradle and she fell asleep. His face fell at Kate's words.

"Can you tell me what they were about?"

The air between the couple became tense with worry. Kate stared out into the rolling waves of the ocean. It would be rough surf after dark.

"You and Juliet buried me alive Jack. I had dirt under my finger nails and some dirt got into my lungs."

Jack did his best to be open-minded and listen to her story without judging her. He nodded but he grew skeptical of the last part of her statement.

"Kate listen to me if that last part happened for _real_ you'd be in respiratory distress. Our lungs aren't meant to have foreign objects in them."

* * *

Jack wasn't quite sure what had woken him, but all the hairs on his arms stood straight up and fear invaded his gut. Kate was gasping for breath. He wracked his brain to see if he remembered Kate having any medical conditions. He came up with none. Taking her face in his hands, he tried to see if he could get her to focus on him.

"Kate look at me. Can you tell me what you're feeling right now?"

She was soaking wet. Her hair and clothes smelled like saltwater. _Had she gone for a swim?_ But then that didn't make sense. _In her clothes?_ He found Juliet just outside their shared tent, eyes heavy lidded but growing concerned as he turned his attention back to Kate. Her eyes were wide open now and she was confused and scared. He knew she hated feeling vulnerable. She lurched forward and clear liquid spilled from her mouth.

"Jack what happened?"

He motioned for her to enter the tent. The liquid kept coming, and Kate felt her lungs begin to burn.

"How did she get saltwater in her lungs?"

 _Had Kate been sleepwalking?_ Jack wondered how she could've slept walked to the shoreline and gone for a swim. Then came back to their tent. It didn't seem possible.

To Be Continued…


	9. A perfect dream gone bad

**Chapter 9: A perfect dream gone bad**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Grace. Date Started: 6/6/15. Date Finished: 6/8/15.

* * *

 _Flashback_

 _20 minutes earlier_

Kate took in a lungful of fresh salty air. It was a beautiful morning out. She'd just fed and changed Megan and she'd fallen asleep again. Sometimes the three of them took a walk down the beach a ways, but this morning Kate felt like doing something on her own. Staring out at the waves, she grinned. _A nice swim would do me some good._ Going out a little ways Kate dove into the surf and when she resurfaced, she choked on a mouthful of water. Swimming to shore, she took note not to go too far out next time; a sneaker wave almost took her out to sea. As she made her way back to the tent, she was shivering. A slight breeze had picked up. By the time she got back to the tent she shared with her daughter and Jack she felt strange. There was a kind of weight settled in her lungs. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she began to gasp for breath. Jack was still fast asleep. She reached a hand to wake him but he didn't stir. Feeling warm hands on her face, she heard Jack's voice, but it was faraway.

" _Kate look at me… Can you tell me what you're feeling right now?"_

She didn't understand what was going on. _Why was she hearing Jack's voice?_ He was asleep. Shutting her eyes, she continued to gasp. _What's wrong with me?_ Opening them, she now found it was dark inside the tent and Jack had her by the shoulders. In the firelight, she could see his very concerned eyes staring back at her. Leaning forward in his arms, she expelled saltwater from her lungs. She managed a glance over at Juliet who was now standing outside their tent. She didn't even notice her come inside, but heard her voice.

"How did she get saltwater in her lungs?"

* * *

Her lungs burned as the saltwater exited them, chest heaving. Kate's frightened eyes were having a difficult time focusing on anything in front of her. The last of the saltwater expelled itself from her lungs and she felt the warmth from Jack's hand on her upper back. Now coughing spells wracked her wet and shivering body. Her brain finally registering that something had happened to her, she looked at her wet clothes. Helping her sit up, Jack looked over her carefully as he handed her the discarded water bottle lying haphazardly beside the bed. Staring at the half empty and faded bottle in her hands she shivered some more. Voice hoarse she became frantic.

"Jack why am I wet? What's going on?"

Jack supplied Kate with a troubled stare not precisely sure how to explain her situation.

"Juliet and I believe you may have been sleepwalking Kate."

An incredulous and unsure expression clouded Kate's face.

"Jack I have _never_ slept walked before in my life. What makes you think that's what I did?"

The crackling fire was distracting Kate. Shivering more Kate wrapped her arms around herself. Running a hand through his hair Jack knew that it was almost pointless to argue with Kate. What he needed to do was change the subject and come back to it when she was ready to talk. Right now, he needed to get her out of these wet clothes.

"We don't have to talk about what happened right now Kate. But you need to get out of these wet clothes before you come down with a cold."

Digging through a bag Jack found a cream tank top and cream pants to go along with it. Juliet had stepped out and pulled the blankets back down over the front and sides of Jack and Kate's tent so they had some privacy. As Jack helped Kate pull her wet shirt over her head, he took note of the thin long pink line that ran down her stomach. It hadn't festered lately, which was good. He was careful as he dried her off. Helping her put the dry tank top over her head; he stole a kiss from her.

"So what did happen?"

Kate became slightly agitated at Jack's words.

"I don't want to talk about it right now Jack."

She stopped him from helping her with the dry pants that lie on the bed.

"I've got it Jack. You don't have to help me with every little thing."

Nodding silently at first, he took a look a long scratch by her forehead. The firelight providing some much-needed light in the darkened shelter.

"Where did you get this?"

Prodding the scratch with his fingers Kate moved her head away.

"It's nothing. I must've got it the other day while walking into a tree branch in the jungle."

Jack stood his ground and shook his head in disagreement.

"The angle of this scratch doesn't coincide with walking into a tree branch Kate. This looks like something you get when you hit your head on a rock."

A bruise he noticed was forming around the scratch. Probing it some more Jack saw her wince.

"Jack, I don't know how I got _this_ on my forehead. Just like I don't know why I'm wet and smell like saltwater."

Worry tinged Jack's features as he raised his right index and middle finger in front of her eyes.

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

Scrunching up her face and furrowing her eyebrows, she stared hard at Jack's fingers.

"Six?"

Shoulders slumped; a frown inserted itself on Jack's lips.

"You have a concussion. I need you to take it easy. Just for a little while. No sudden movements got it?"

Dismayed but not deterred Kate agreed, but only half-heartedly.

"Alright Jack _whatever_ you say."

It would be light soon; Jack needed her to stay awake for a while though. As a doctor, he knew that going to sleep with a concussion was not a good idea. He could see Kate staring out into the darkness, the waves crashing against the shore, the roar almost deafening. Her eyes fluttered a bit as she lie back against one of the seats from the plane serving as a bed.

"Hey Kate, open your eyes for me. You cannot fall asleep right now. You need to stay awake and alert."

Kate fought the drowsiness and tried focusing on the sound of Jack's voice. He wished he knew _how_ Kate had gotten her concussion and _when._ It wasn't long until she slipped into unconsciousness, much to Jack's dismay. A sick feeling crept over him, and didn't seem to dissipate. _The island had to be doing this to her._

To Be Continued…


	10. The island's warning

**Chapter 10: The island's warning**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Grace. Date Started: 6/8/15. Date Finished: 6/12/15.

* * *

"Come on Kate. Open your eyes for me."

Jack had tried already to rouse Kate from her unconscious state. But to no avail. She was breathing but she wasn't responding to any stimuli. Frustrated but not giving up he opened her left eyelid and checked her pupil response. It was sluggish and dilated. Daylight was beginning to breakthrough their shelter and it was easier to see. Once again examining the cut along Kate's forehead, he could see a knot was beginning to form on the bruise. Grabbing some bandages from his bag, he also pulled a bottle of peroxide. Preoccupied with treating Kate's wound he hadn't noticed Juliet's hand on his shoulder.

"Jack take a break. I'll watch over her for a while. Megan's getting hungry. Why don't you feed her?"

He agreed with Juliet but on the condition that he stayed within distance of Kate. He knew she wouldn't be alone when she woke up, but it was a matter of _if_ at the moment. Reaching into the cradle, he folded Megan into his arms. She began to fuss. More of a whine/whimper. Megan's tiny face began to scrunch up and she belted out a scream. She was becoming angry. Jack mixed the formula into the makeshift bottle and put the nipple up to her lips. The desperate infant grabbed on and Jack watched her little jaw move up and down as she ate.

"Slow down sweetheart. There is plenty more where that came from. The milk from mommy probably tastes a little better though."

A happy gurgle escaped Megan's tiny mouth as if in agreement with her father. Jack let his mind wander. _Why was all this happening to Kate?_ He mulled over his thoughts and then was brought out of them when Megan let out an unhappy cry.

"I know your tummy is upset."

Gently cradling Megan up to his shoulder, he began patting her back until he heard a tiny burp escape her mouth. The ratty but clean towel he used as a burp rag was surprisingly dry. Megan almost always spit up after she ate. He and Kate didn't get much sleep. Waking up every couple of hours during the night to feed her was exhausting. But that's what being a parent was about. Being there for their child. Placing her back inside the cradle, Jack sat on the edge of the bed. Juliet ran a small jar of smelling salt under Kate's nose, hoping that would pull her from her unconscious state. A startled breath and a low moan escaped Kate's mouth. She had trouble opening her eyes at first. The bright sunlight blinded her and she shut her eyes. Juliet turned her attention to Jack.

"Jack she's waking up."  
Leaning over Kate, Jack fingered the white bandage over the cut on her forehead. Then his index and middle finger on his right hand went to her jugular. Her pulse was steady and getting stronger as the minutes passed. Managing to open her eyes, the colors were vivid, but objects, Jack, and Juliet were blurry.

"Water."

Quickly grabbing for Kate's water bottle filled with fresh water he put a hand behind her neck and tips it to her lips helping her drink the precious liquid. His throat felt dry and his words died on his lips. For a moment he couldn't speak. _Get it together Shepard! Kate is fine._ Finally, Jack found his voice.

"Take it slowly Kate. That's it. Just a little bit at a time."

Kate was still confused. Which Jack knew didn't suit her. She was always the stubborn one who loved to climb trees. Always the first to volunteer for any treks into the jungle. Putting the water back down on the sandy ground beneath him, Jack slid an arm under Kate's shoulders, propping her up against the bed. Wincing she glared at him and pushed his hands away.

"What's wrong?"

Her nose flared for a millisecond.

"Jack could you be a little gentler next time?"

Still confused at first, it dawned on him what he'd done.

"I'm sorry Kate. I know your breasts are sensitive right now. I apologize."

Juliet put a hand up to stop him from speaking more.

"Jack I would leave that alone. She'll talk about the changes her body is going through when she's ready. Don't push her right now."

Jack wanted to argue, but something about Juliet made him stop in his tracks. She was authoritative, but in a quiet manner. She could make people listen to her. Kate froze when she saw a figure standing near the water. Juliet followed her gaze.

"I won't let him hurt you Kate. He can't come in here. Your tent is safe."

Jack got up from the end of the bed, ready to exit the tent. His hands curled into tight fists. Juliet put a hand on his forearm.

"Jack don't go out there. That's what he wants. It's what the Black Smoke does. It tricks you. Taunts you into doing what he wants. His biding. He once lured me into the jungle claiming that my sister and my nephew were here and in trouble. It turned out not to be true."

Jack kept his fists curled. But that was exactly what the Black Smoke wanted, was for him to be angry, it would be easier to lure him in.

To Be Continued…


	11. Hiding the truth

**Chapter 11: Hiding the truth**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Grace. Date Started: 6/13/15. Date Finished: 6/14/15.

* * *

 _Flashback: 7 months 4 days ago…_

 _She was sick. But Kate knew it wasn't because of a cold or flu virus. She'd been this way for 6 weeks now. Jack noticed she didn't look well and had advised her to lie back on the bed they shared. She could see his shadow just outside the tent where he was getting water. Her mind was racing. Sweat was collecting on her brow as Jack came back with fresh water. Setting the much-needed liquid of life down on the ground, he put the back of his left hand up to her forehead and frowned._

" _Kate your forehead is soaking wet. What's the matter?"_

 _Her face was pale as she shook her head._

" _Just a little tired."_

 _Handing her the water, Jack watched as she took three big swallows and set the bottle back on the sandy floor beneath the bed. Furrowing his eyebrows together in worry, he put both hands under Kate's chin and probed gently with his fingers._

" _Your lymph nodes aren't swollen or compromised. Your tonsils aren't red with white splotches on them. You don't have a cough. Have you had any diarrhea? Nausea? Vomiting? Stomach pain?"_

 _Kate shook her head no and looked Jack straight in the eye._

" _No diarrhea. Nausea yes. Vomiting yes. Stomach pain, no."_

 _Jack was doing his best to put the pieces of the puzzle together._

" _Ok. Any dizziness when you sit or stand?"_

 _If her face could get any paler, Kate's did._

" _Sometimes I get dizzy when I stand up."_

 _Jack tried to read Kate's expression. But she was good at hiding things. Making her lie back once more, Jack gestured towards her shirt._

" _Could you lift up your shirt for me Kate?"_

 _Kate nodded quietly and lifted her shirt. Looking away from him, she tensed at his touch._

" _Jack please be careful."_

 _Questions were now forming on Jack's lips. The doctor in him was completely taking over._

" _Well it's not your appendix. The skin is not hot to the touch. But your abdomen is ridged."_

 _Kate put her shirt down and crossed her arms over her chest._

" _Jack there's something I uh need to tell you."_

 _Jack let his hands drop to his lap and he sat down on the bed next to Kate. Fear began to gnaw at her stomach._

" _What is it?"_

 _Fidgeting on the bed Kate stared at her hands atop her lap._

" _I'm pregnant Jack."_

 _Jack thought his heart stopped. A lump formed in his throat as he grabbed for Kate's hand pulling her to her feet._

" _We're going to talk to Juliet and she's going to take us to the medical station."_

 _The couple left their tent and made their way down the beach towards Juliet and Sawyer's. Juliet stepped outside the tent she shared with Sawyer and frowned when she saw the worried expressions on Jack and Kate's faces. Following them to the tree line, she saw Kate take a breath before she told her what Jack already knew._

" _It looks like your six weeks along Kate. Jack and I will have to monitor you closely from now on. Your morning sickness will get more prevalent and stronger as you progress towards your second trimester. By your fifth month, you'll feel weak without much energy. By your sixth month you'll fall into a coma and your heart will give out."_

 _Kate stared past Juliet to the grainy black and white screen and fingered it. The steady heartbeat lulled her into a false sense of hope. A tear slipped down her cheek as she tried to see if she could make out what her baby looked like. Of course, it was too early to tell. Looking Juliet straight in the eye Kate held her determined attitude._

" _If you can't save me, at least save my baby."_

 _Juliet took Kate's hand and squeezed it._

" _I will do everything in my power to figure out a way to save the both of you."_

 _Kate knew what was coming and it wasn't going to be all that pleasant._

 _To Be Continued…_


	12. Protecting the ones you love

**Chapter 12: Protecting the ones you love**

Author: Zeusfluff.

Disclaimer: Do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Cody and Gracie. Date Started: 6/14/15. Date Finished: 6/15/15.

* * *

Jack got up from the end of the bed, ready to exit the tent. His hands curled into tight fists. Juliet put a hand on his forearm.

"Jack don't go out there. That's what he wants. It's what the Black Smoke does. It tricks you. Taunts you into doing what he wants. His biding. He once lured me into the jungle claiming that my sister and my nephew were here and in trouble. It turned out not to be true."

Jack kept his fists curled. But that was exactly what the Black Smoke wanted, was for him to be angry, it would be easier to lure him in. The man that stood outside the shelter in which he and Kate called home for the past five years made him angry. His fists still curled tightly he attempted to leave the shelter. As he grabbed for the blue tarp over the front to serve as privacy he heard Juliet speak again, but not to him this time.

"Kate you need to stay absolutely still. No sudden movements."

Kate completely ignored Juliet and grabbed for Jack's hand. He squeezed it and looked into her eyes.

"Stay here with Juliet. I won't let him hurt you or Megan."

Jack's heart skipped a few beats when he saw the man who looked like his father holding something in his arms. He grew leery of the situation and willed himself to back away, but something told him to get closer. Forgetting to breathe for a scarce moment or two, Jack could see a pink bundle in his 'father's' arms. It was a wet and screaming child. Turmoil seemed to build inside of Jack but the doctor in him said to take the screaming child away from the evil that was standing before him. Jack peered at the howling bundle and then up at Christian.

"Megan?"

Christian shook his head no and gestured towards the screaming baby.

"No. This is someone else. You can take the baby."

Mindful of the child he'd scooped up into his arms, Jack frantically looked around, but Christian was now gone. Taking tentative steps back to his tent, the baby kept screaming. Once inside he set the child down on the makeshift table to have a better look at them. Unwrapping the pink blanket from the child, he found that the baby was a little girl. She continued to cry as Jack examined her.

"Hey there. It's ok. I know it's a little cold out here. But this blanket will keep you warm, and we'll take care of you."

The baby girl on the makeshift table squirmed as Jack cleaned her up. Her entire body was bright red and he noticed that there was a clamp that tied off what was left of the umbilical cord stump. A crowd was beginning to form outside the shelter. Sawyer stood just outside and called to Jack when he saw the squirming baby on the table through the tarp. He looked suspicious and a little worried at the same time.

"Did Kate just have another baby doc?"

Taking but a brief millisecond to glance at Sawyer standing 'guard' outside his tent Jack gave an exasperated sigh and turned back to the little girl in front of him.

"No Sawyer. Could you please give us some space so I can work on her? Get those people out of here."

His focus was again on the little girl whose face was scrunched together so tight from screaming he thought it would stay that way. He tried comforting her. Getting her to calm down was not going to be easy.

"Hey now. What's the matter? Does something hurt? It's ok. Juliet and I will make you all better."

Juliet walked over and perched herself next to Jack and reached over to caress the tiny baby's head after she'd cleaned her hands.

"Hey. What's the matter little one?"

The little girl only cried louder. Kate who was sitting quietly and holding Megan tried her hand to comfort the girl.

"Hey there sweetie. It's all right. Nothing will hurt you here."

At the sound of Kate's voice, the little girl stopped howling and her cries were but whimpers. Jack and Juliet exchanged confused looks at each other and then towards Kate. Jack remembered Charlie telling him Sawyer's voice comforted Aaron and made him stop crying when he was a baby. Juliet ran a finger down the infants left arm as Jack continued looking her over.

"Her umbilical cord has been cut recently. The only place you can find clamps like this is back at the medical station. When my 'father' gave her to me, she was still covered in amniotic fluid. Therefore, the mother wherever she may be gave birth to her less than one hour ago. We should find the mother and make sure she's doing all right."

Juliet's mood went down considerably and kept her tears in check. Swallowing she answered Jack.

"Assuming she's even still alive."

The nameless baby in front of Jack and Juliet began to whimper, but she was no longer screaming. Jack stopped testing the infant's reflexes for an instant and looked at her facial features. They seemed familiar. Her tiny nose resembled his own and her lips held the tiniest of smirks. A name slipped from his mouth before he could stop himself.

"Gracie…"

Juliet furrowed her eyebrows and shook her head.

"I'm sorry?"

A wide smile spread over his lips. But as he attempted to bring Gracie over to Kate she disappeared from his arms. For the briefest of moments he got to see his second little girl. Even if it was just a glimpse of what was to come. Juliet was right. The Black Smoke was toying with him. Taunting him, and the island was helping.

"She's my daughter, and her mother is sitting on the bed over there. You were right. He was taunting me. He wants something. But what is it?"

Juliet's eyes were wide. She knew things about The Black Smoke that Jack didn't.

"I can't tell you that Jack. Only you can figure that out. Just like I had to figure out why I was seeing my sister and my nephew."

Jack's anger began to bubble to the surface again. _Why give me something and then rip it away from me?_

To Be Continued…


	13. Kindness and helping hands

**Chapter 13: Kindness and helping hands**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody. Date Started: 6/15/15. Date Finished: 6/17/15.

* * *

 _Flashback: 4 months and 3 days ago…_

" _Kate! Don't you dare!"_

 _Kate had always been a daredevil. Climbing trees had been exhilarating for her since she was small. If only she could reach the last papaya on the tree branch way above her head. But right now she was endangering not only her own life, but that of her baby as well._

" _Get down on your knees Jack. I can stand on your shoulders and grab that papaya."_

 _Jack wrapped a hand around Kate's wrist to stop her._

" _No. I'm not letting you do that. You are five months pregnant. You want that papaya; I'll get it for you."_

 _Jack never liked trees. Not since he'd fallen out of one as a boy and broken his right arm. But he'd do this for Kate. He loved her and he loved this baby. She'd been doing surprisingly well. He wasn't sure if the island was helping her or if it was the injections that Juliet was administering. Gulping Jack began to ascend the gigantic tree. Scrabbling at the branches, he found the Papaya and tossed it down to Kate. Losing his balance slightly, he grappled for a few branches and managed to regain his composure. The dizzying height of the tree made him see double for a minute. Taking in another lungful of air Jack started to descend from the tree. Reaching the bottom, he looked at Kate who was eating her papaya. After swallowing her second bite, she gave him a concerned look._

" _You ok Jack?"_

 _Wiping cold sweat from his forehead he nodded._

" _I'm guessing you never fell out of a tree when you were a kid?"_

 _Kate happily nodded her head._

" _Nope. You have to know exactly where to step and which tree branches can hold your weight Jack. My dad when we used to go hunting when I was a kid taught me a lot about trees."_

 _She was now picking up her pace and walking faster than he was. He had to jog to keep up with her._

" _Hey! Would you slow down? What has gotten into you Kate? Where is this burst of energy coming from all of a sudden?"_

 _Shrugging nonchalantly, she took the last of her Papaya and popped it into her mouth._

" _My second wind I guess. I have a good feeling about this Jack. Somehow, the island is helping me. Helping us. I haven't felt faint or weak. You yourself said that my heart was healthy."_

 _Jack nodded as he saw the tree line that was blocking the view of the beach. Beyond it, he could hear the waves crashing against the shore._

" _Kate please don't misunderstand what I have to tell you. Something could still happen to you. Just because we haven't seen it yet, doesn't mean it won't. What we do know is that your heart is healthy, you haven't had any fainting spells or dizziness, and the baby is healthy."_

 _Kate was a lot like Jack; in that respect, it was that she too didn't like to be pitied. As they emerged from the trees and onto the beach, she tried to hide her frustration._

" _Jack please stop worrying about me. We are both fine."_

 _Eyes squarely on hers Jack took both Kate's hands and held them in his own._

" _This is a high risk pregnancy Kate. Anything can happen to you at any time. You need to take it easy. Stay off your feet as much as you can."_

 _Kate was irritated. She didn't like being pitied or babied. She just wanted everyone to treat her like a normal person._

" _I realize that Jack. But every time I turn a corner or trip on a rock doesn't mean I'm going to break. I'm not a china plate."_

 _Jack sighed and was sure that his feelings towards her condition were justified. He gave a smile to Juliet who was down the beach a ways. He knew it was time for Kate's morning injection. Kate dreaded the gray case with the Dharma Initiative medical logo on it. Although smaller, Kate thought it resembled the silver case the guns were once locked in. Gripping his hand in a deathlike grip, Kate stopped in her tracks._

" _I don't want any more injections Jack."_

 _Tears unshed Kate looked away from Jack's sympathetic and loving gaze._

" _Kate these injections are what's keeping you and the baby healthy. If Juliet were to stop administering them, you would get very sick. If she were to stop giving you the injections today, tomorrow you would be in a coma. This is very important Kate. I wish there was another way."_

 _The unshed tears were threatening to come down her cheeks at any moment. Having now arrived inside their shelter Jack helped her lie back on their bed. The couple looked up as Juliet stood at the entrance._

" _May I come in?"_

 _Nodding Jack gave her permission and she put down the tarp in front of their 'door'. Setting the gray case down on the table beside the bed, she gave Kate's hand a small squeeze._

" _I'll make this as quick as possible Kate. Jack?"_

 _Juliet gestured towards Jack and he steeled himself. Just like the hundreds of times before over the last five months. Kate averted her eyes away from Juliet as she came towards her with a 30-gauge syringe and inside the carpule was a yellow liquid substance. She felt Jack's cool hands on her bare stomach and winced at his touch._

" _Jack your hands are freezing."_

 _He became apologetic and moved his hands lightly over her stomach to feel the position of the baby._

" _The baby is positioned in the upper and lower left quadrants. Try the lower right quadrant."_

 _Nodding in agreement Juliet inserted the long syringe into the lower half of Kate's stomach and did her best to concentrate._

" _Shh. It'll be all done in a minute."_

 _Kate bit her lip and reached for Jack's hand._

" _But it hurts. It really hurts."_

 _Once Juliet pulled the syringe out she placed a piece of gauze and put tape over it to stop the bleeding. She helped pull Kate's shirt down and turned her back towards the two to give them a moment. Jack pulled Kate into his embrace kissing her forehead and rocked her a little._

" _I know it does and I'm sorry. I wish there was another way to do this."_

 _Kate relaxed into Jack's arms and stayed there for a while. Yawning she peered up at Jack whose eyes held the deepest love she'd ever seen._

" _Jack I'm tired."_

 _One of the side effects of the daily injections twice a day was that it made Kate sleepy. A sympathetic smile crossed Jack's lips as he pulled a blanket over her._

" _It's ok. Just close your eyes and rest. You did good. I'll be here when you wake up."_

 _Shaking his head, he began whispering to Juliet who was placing everything back inside the gray case she'd brought with her._

" _I hate seeing her cry like that. Isn't there anything we could give her to block the pain?"_

 _Sighing Jack noticed Juliet looked more tired than normal. But then again she'd spent most of her time taking care of Kate.  
"Nothing that wouldn't harm the baby. The best thing for her Jack is that you be there for her. She needs all your support right now. The six-month mark is coming up quickly and we may have to deal with the fact she might have an early labor. Claire would've died if I hadn't given her these same injections."_

 _Jack held in his temper. He also felt guilty about what had been done to his sister._

" _Could we leave my sister out of this conversation? We're talking about Kate here."_

 _Kate was still comfortably nestled in Jack's arms. Juliet nodded and watched Kate breathe for a few seconds._

" _She'll need to be monitored more closely from now on Jack. It's going to get harder before it'll get easier. We have to be prepared for anything."_

 _But that's what Jack was worried about most. What if he lost Kate?_

 _To Be Continued…_


	14. First meetings and a special gift

**Chapter 14: First meetings/a special gift**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody. Date Started: 6/17/15. Date Finished: 6/20/15.

* * *

"Jack I want to tell you what I'm going through."

Jack took a seat next to Kate and put a hand on the small of her back. He could tell she was nervous.

"All right Kate. I'm listening."

Medically speaking, Jack knew what Kate was going through. However, that's where it stopped.

"I feel like I'm wearing a pair of rocks. Every time I go to feed Megan, I have to steel myself my breasts are so sensitive."

Kate was feeling self-conscious and she never liked the feeling. Jack was there to lend a helping hand to Kate in every way he could, but reassuring her was all he could do.

"Kate I realize what you're going through is painful right now but once you get used to it won't be so bad. It also helps if Megan nurses not only from the left but the right too. I'm going to take a walk. You should get some fresh air. I'm sure Megan would like it too. Claire would like to see her."

A smile started to creep up on her lips. It had been some time since she'd taken a walk down the beach with Jack. Leaning down to take Megan into her arms, she stopped short when her muscles began to ache.

"Ok. Remind me that leaning over is off the table for a while."

A sympathetic gaze formed in Jack's eyes. He was doing his absolute best to understand what Kate was going through.

"Yeah. It's going to take some time for your muscles to heal. Especially after having just had a C-section. Here. I'll get her."

Securing Megan into Kate's arms Jack helped her to her feet. The two walked together along the beach towards Claire's tent. A young boy about 5 came bounding out.

"Uncle Jack!"

Launching himself into Jack's arms, Aaron began to giggle. Jack caught the small boy with sandy blond hair and blue eyes.

"Hey buddy. Where's your mom and Charlie?"

Aaron tugged on Jack's hand but stopped when he saw Kate holding Megan standing next to them.

"Aunty Kate! When we get back to mommy and Charlie can I hold Megan?"

A grin spread across Kate's pretty features and a nod ensued.

"Of course you can goober. But you'll have to be real careful with her ok? She's very little."

The small boy nodded happily and began to tug on Jack's hand applying more pressure to pull him forward.

"Ok Aunty Kate. Come on Uncle Jack!"

A thought crossed Kate's mind as they reached Claire and Charlie's tent. _Jack had his family here with him all along._ Kate nearly tripped on a rock but was quick to keep Megan steady in her arms so that she didn't take a spill. Aaron had already run inside. Kate hadn't noticed Jack was beside her, until she felt his gentle but strong hand on her elbow.

"I've got you. Watch your step sweetheart."

A blush began to form on her cheeks and she picked up her feet.

"Thanks, but I've got it Jack."

Jack felt frustrated. He was there for Kate in every way he could think of. He had to be patient with her. Knowing that she was in the beginning stages of Post-partum depression he had to tread lightly. Any little thing could set her off. They had to work through it together. He needed her as much as she needed him. Putting on a smile Jack was pulled into the tent by Aaron. Charlie clapped a hand to Jack's shoulder.

"I think congratulations are in order. I never got the chance to tell you the day Megan was born."

An appreciative smile playing on his lips Jack let out a small laugh.

"Thanks Charlie."

He watched as Claire held Megan in her arms. Megan was grabbing for pieces of Claire's shirt. Kate took a seat next to her and traced a finger under Megan's jaw.

"So, when are you going to have another one of these?"

Claire looked at Kate and then back down at Megan.

"I have thought about it, but it's not the right time."

Aaron tugged on his mother's shirt. Megan whimpered and opened up her eyes. She gasped and watched as the little girl looked up at her intently.

"She has Jack's eyes I think. She has so much hair on her head! Aaron didn't have any hair on his when he was born."

Kate smiled at the thought. She remembered the night Aaron was born. She'd been beyond terrified to deliver Aaron. However, when a tiny baby emerged from Claire and into her arms she felt proud of herself. Helping Claire that night made her feel for one moment, that she could erase all her past sins, all her wrongdoings.

"I remember. He's a wonderful little boy. I remember his 10 perfect little toes and fingers. We are so lucky that he came out healthy."

Aaron tugged on Claire's shirt again.

"When can I hold her?"

Claire looked over at Aaron and smiled.

"In a minute sweetheart. Don't pester mum now."

Aaron sat quietly even though he fidgeted some. The smile still on her face Claire looks her son in the eye.

"Ok Aaron hold out your arms. Be gentle with her now. You know mummy remembers when you were that little."

Aaron's eyes lit up as he held his cousin.

"She's really little mommy."

Claire ruffled Aaron's hair and watched him as he interacted with Megan.

"When you get bigger Megan we're going to build sandcastles together."

Jack laughed slightly and watched his nephew playing with Megan.

"It'll be awhile before the two of you can build sandcastles. She's too little right now."

Aaron nodded at Jack and then shrugged his shoulders.

"I know Uncle Jack. But we have to protet her from the scary smoke monster."

Jack knelt down to his level and spoke up.

"Don't worry Aaron. We'll protect your cousin from the monster. Uncle Jack and everyone here will keep you guys safe."

Jack was determined to keep the children safe. Not only Aaron but his own children. Kate's eyes widened at Aaron's words. Claire had said he was special, he could sometimes see flashes of things.

To Be Continued…


	15. Stopping a disaster

**Chapter 15: Stopping a disaster**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody. Date Started: 6/20/15. Date Finished: 6/22/15.

* * *

 _Flashback: 3 months and 2 days ago…_

 _Kate had decided to soak her feet in the water along the shoreline when pain gripped below her belly. Excruciating and deep-set pain entrenched her entire belly, making it extremely difficult to call out for Jack. However, she managed. A strangled call issued from her throat._

" _Jack! HELP!"_

 _Jack dropped the half-filled water bottle he'd been filling from the water trough and ran towards Kate._

" _KATE!"_

 _One of Kate's hands found Jack's left one and held on tight. She let out a scream and dug her feet into the sand._

" _Jack it's too soon! Please help me!"_

 _Gathering his strength, Jack did his best to scoop her up into his arms._

" _Juliet!"_

 _He didn't see her emerge from her tent at first. He was sure his back would give at any moment but Juliet showed up to help._

" _We have to get her to the medical station. She'll need to be on monitors and be given drugs to stop her labor. This is bad Jack. From here on out everything will become unpredictable."_

 _As the two passed the tents with a screaming Kate, Sawyer looked on with wild and frightened eyes._

" _Anything I can do to help doc?"_

 _Jack shook his head vigorously and shifted Kate's weight trying to be as gentle as possible with her._

" _No Sawyer. You'd just be in the way. This is private."_

 _Sawyer knew not to say anymore but looked on as Juliet and Jack carried Kate into the jungle. Jack was running on pure adrenaline, he had no time to be scared or worried. His mind was practically on autopilot. His movements were clumsy yet somehow fluid as he and Juliet carried Kate through the jungle towards the medical station. It was their only hope in saving her. He watched Kate belt out another blood-curdling scream as she placed both hands on her belly. Jack looked to Juliet who had Kate by the legs. Jack held her up by her arms._

" _Her contractions are coming 20 minutes apart Juliet."_

 _Nodding Juliet kept a hold on Kate as the foliage covering the medical station's hatch doors came into view._

" _If her contractions stay at the 20 minute mark then I can reverse her labor. But if it gets down to five minutes there's nothing I can do."_

 _Jack brushed aside a dark thought that just consumed his mind. Cradling Kate in his arms as Juliet opened up the hatch doors he wiped some sweat away from her forehead._

" _Everything's going to be fine Kate. Juliet will stop the labor and you'll be on bed rest for a few days."_

 _Kate was so consumed by pain she hadn't noticed a thing Jack said to her as they carried her inside the medical station and into the hidden room behind the lockers in the locker room. Setting her down cautiously onto the parked gurney in the middle of the room Kate shivered as they removed her clothes and helped her into a gown._

" _Jack I can't… breathe."_

 _Shaking his head, he helped her lie back._

" _Look at me Kate everything's going to be fine. Just try and relax ok?"_

 _Juliet frowned and let her gaze wander towards Jack. He was still trying to piece together the puzzle when Juliet interrupted._

" _Shortness of breath Jack. That's one of the symptoms. Now if I can't get this labor under control and stopped, it'll continue. Once I've stopped the labor she'll need another injection. Give her some oxygen. No not the nasal cannula. The oxygen mask."_

 _Taking the order Jack turned on the o2 tank and placed the oxygen mask over her nose and mouth. He refused to let the fear in. He had faith in Juliet. She could do this. He watched as she placed leads onto her belly then handed him some to place onto her chest monitoring Kate's heart._

" _Ok the baby's heart rate is a steady 142. I'm going to give you something to stop your labor alright Kate?"_

 _Kate was fighting to keep her tears from leaving her eyes but two escaped. Jack followed Juliet with his eyes as she rifled through the drawer nearest to her._

" _I'm afraid the only thing I've got on hand is Terbutaline. It'll do the job and stop her labor."_

 _Jack placed a hand on Juliet's. Then smirking and letting out a humorless laugh._

" _A little outdated don't you think?"_

 _Juliet eyed Jack and removed the cap from the syringe. Inserting it into Kate's IV in her hand, she cautiously watched her heart rate._

" _It may be a little outdated but it still works. If you haven't noticed, I haven't been out in the real world practicing medicine in 8 years. You haven't done so in 5. So can we call it even and help Kate?"_

 _Satisfied with Juliet's answer Jack went back over to Kate and helped her move farther down on the bed. Kate shook her head no and held onto Jack. Kissing her crown, he comforted her._

" _Shh. I know you don't like the next part. It's uncomfortable. Juliet will make it quick. I promise."_

 _Kate winced and looked away distracting herself with watching the lines on the machine, which monitored her baby. Meanwhile Jack looked at Juliet expectantly. Relief washed over his face as she sighed._

" _You're at 5 centimeters. I'd be more worried if you were at 7. The drugs I gave you should start working its magic within another 20 minutes. I'll get you something for the pain."_

 _A red warning light flashed across Jack's mind eye. Voicing his concerns he spoke._

" _Is there any bleeding?"_

 _Juliet shook her head no, removing her gloves and putting on fresh ones._

" _No there isn't, and that's a very good thing. It means I can reverse this."_

 _Through all the commotion in the room, tubes and wires Juliet and Jack hadn't noticed Sawyer standing in the doorway. That is until they heard him speak._

" _Is she going to be ok?"_

 _Juliet nearly whirled on her left heel to face Sawyer. Face becoming serious, she let herself become stern._

" _James please leave. Jack and I have everything under control. Please just give us some privacy."_

 _Jack shielded Kate from Sawyer's view and he averted his eyes towards the floor._

" _Alright doc, I'll go. I'm sorry I followed ya here. I just wanted to know how she was doing and if she was going to be ok."_

 _Temper flaring Jack nearly threw himself at Sawyer but opted for grinding his teeth._

" _Does she look ok to you! That's none of your concern anymore is it Sawyer?"_

 _Sawyer's face darkened and his jaw became tight with anger. Inside he still had feelings for Kate, but he knew it was over between the two of them. He had Juliet to think about now. Juliet snapped the two men out of their little temper tantrum._

" _Knock it off you two! Do I have to separate the two of you and put you in a time out?"_

 _Kate interrupted the three other occupants of the room with another scream and she grabbed a fistful of Jack's shirt._

" _Jack! I need you to focus right now! Get me something for the pain… NOW!"_

 _Jack seemed to snap out of his little tiff and he apologized placing the oxygen mask back over her face._

" _I'm sorry sweetheart. Just lie back and relax. Keep breathing."_

 _Sawyer had never seen Kate like this before. She was always so strong. However, Jack was taking care of her now. He disappeared out the door and didn't return. Jack turned back to Kate when he heard Juliet say something to her._

" _Kate I need you to stay absolutely still. All right? I'll get you that epidural I promised."_

 _Shutting her eyes and then opening them, she found Jack staring at her with concerned eyes of his own._

" _Would you like a blanket? You look a little cold."_

 _Kate didn't even have to tell Jack with words her shivering told it for her._

" _Is that better?"_

 _Staying still under the blanket Kate sighed as the contraction wound down._

" _Much."_

 _Jack ran a hand over her forehead and saw that she was still struggling to catch her breath. Juliet held a sympathetic gaze towards Kate but she kept her eyes on Jack._

" _Jack can you help me turn her over onto her side? I want to give her that epidural now. The pain will only continue to get worse until the contractions have stopped."_

 _Swallowing a terrible taste that rose from his stomach Jack helped Juliet turn Kate onto her side and threaded his own arms under Kate's to hold her in place. He heard her whimper slightly. It was muffled behind the oxygen mask._

" _No more needles Jack."_

 _He hated himself for this happening to her. For six months, she'd been poked, prodded, and checked and Juliet had promised him that she would do everything in her power to save Kate and their baby._

" _Just stay still sweetheart. Juliet has to insert the epidural into your lower back all right? I know it hurts but it will be over in just a minute. I'm right here. I won't leave you. I promise."_

 _Kate tensed as Juliet began to insert the needle into her back. Juliet tried not to sound exasperated but the sigh escaped._

" _Relax Kate. I promise this'll only take a minute. Take a deep breath in and relax your muscles. That's it."_

 _Staring into Jack's eyes was helping ease her racing mind. Jack felt her relax slightly in his arms. He leaned in and whispered into her left ear._

" _Ok the epidural is in. You can relax now. Juliet and I are going to place you onto your back so you can rest."_

 _Even the slight motion of putting her onto her backside was dizzying.  
"Jack I'm dizzy."_

 _Worry creased his forehead and he looked to Juliet for guidance._

" _Didn't you say that was one of the other symptoms?"_

 _Juliet could see Jack was tense but she also knew in this particular case it wasn't something to worry about. Kate seemed to be recovering just fine._

" _Jack, her equilibrium is just a little off. Didn't you ever spin around really fast as a kid and get dizzy when you stopped?"_

 _A small 'oh' escaped his mouth as he ran his hand through Kate's curly dark hair._

" _Well yeah. Did we move her too fast?"_

 _Kate was tired and Jack could see her eyes drooping._

" _I feel better now."_

 _Kissing her temple, Jack reclaimed his seat next to her. She drifted off into a semi-peaceful sleep. She would need her strength. Juliet put a hand on Jack's shoulder._

" _Once she's had a little rest she'll need another injection. There are still more symptoms that may arise in the next three months. But I feel I'm very close to fixing this problem. Kate is my control patient."_

 _Jack hoped Juliet was right. He'd sit there all night if he had to. His family was very important to him. He would help Kate through this and their family would thrive. Juliet had to be onto something. He could feel it._

" _Juliet this is going to work right?"_

 _Fear seized Juliet but she couldn't let that stop her from doing her work._

" _Jack I will do everything in my power to make this work. You have my word."_

 _To Be Continued…_


	16. Struggling to cope

**Chapter 16: Struggling to cope**

Author: ZeusFluff

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 6/23/15. Date Finished: 6/24/15.

* * *

The waves crashing against the shoreline were grating on Kate's ears. The dark circles under her eyes were getting worse.

"Kate listen to me, you haven't had a good night's sleep since before Megan was born. I want you to rest. I will feed Megan, change and take care of her."

Kate's reaction was almost mirroring Claire's a few days after Aaron was born. Her hands hovered over the cradle ready to reach for Megan.

"Jack no. How am I going to keep her safe if I'm asleep? I have to stay awake."

Jack rubbed a hand up and down her left arm.

"I promise I won't let anything happen to her sweetheart."

Anger made her nostrils flare. The tears stinging her eyes she watched the sleeping infant.

"Of course you won't Jack. Just like the morning when Megan was taken a month ago. You didn't even try to stop the thing wearing your father's face! You let him take her!"

Jack tried to hold back his frustration and deal with the barrage of accusatory remarks Kate threw at him. They were a ton of plate glass landing on his head.

"I was asleep Kate! You were the one who woke me up saying we had to find the baby! You think this is my fault he took her? Huh?"

Kate knew it was wrong to blame Jack but he was the only one in the tent she could blame. Tears were flowing freely down her face as she yelled at Jack.

"You don't think this is your fault! That's right put all the blame on me! I'm the mother so it must be my fault!"

Jack took a breath and let it out. He picked up a screaming Megan and placed her against his shoulder rocking her.

"Shh. It's alright Megan. I'm sorry."

Kate's shoulders slumped as she calmed down. This was their first significant big fight they'd had. She was sleep-deprived and her emotions off the map. Her bottom lip trembled just slightly as she stared at Jack.

"Jack I'm sorry… I don't understand what's going on with me. Everything's sore, I smell…. Sometimes she cries and I don't know what she wants…"

His anger now completely dissipated Jack sympathized with Kate.

"Kate you're going through Post-partum depression. I am going to help you through this. Together we can make it through this."

Kate afforded Jack a small smile as he continued to rock Megan and hold her up against his shoulder.

"I have always been with you Jack."

His heart soared at Kate's words. She told him that when he felt most vulnerable. A rough patch was a rough patch, they could weather most any storm. Jack just had to believe in himself and Kate.

To Be Continued…


	17. Making amends

**Chapter 17: Making amends**

Author: ZeusFluff

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 6/25/15. Date Finished: 6/26/15.

* * *

Kate was sleeping soundly as Jack tidied up their tent. He'd put Megan in the sling while he did his work. The next thing on the list was doing laundry. He'd have to bring the cradle outside under the palm tree while he washed his and Kate's clothes. The pile of their laundry, two weeks' worth lie in what was left of some sort of wooden crate. Jack struggled with the cradle and tried to keep Megan from waking up. Sawyer walked up with his signature smirk and spoke up.

"Well if it ain't doctor giggles and the princess. Here let me help ya with that."

Biting back his pride Jack let Sawyer move the cradle next to a smaller trough used for washing.

"Thanks."

Sawyer nodded his head and started walking away. Megan cooed as Jack took her from the sling secured to his shoulder. Swaddling her in the blanket, he put her inside the cradle.

"There we go. All snug in your bed. Now you stay there while daddy does laundry ok?"

Megan gave Jack what he thought was a gummy smile. Letting out a tiny laugh, he shook his head.

"You think that's funny? You are just like your mommy."

Megan smiled and cooed at Jack. She had Kate's stormy eyes, but his eye color. He dunked his green shirt into the small water trough. Removing it from the water, he set it on a rock and applied some soap. Using the rock as a washboard, he began to scrub his shirt. Juliet peeked into the cradle where Megan had just stuck her hand in her mouth.

"Hey little one. Are you keeping daddy company while he does laundry?"

A happy coo came from Megan and Juliet turned to Jack when he acknowledged her.

"If you've come to check on Kate she's asleep inside our tent."

Juliet stared at Jack and crossed her arms. She hadn't come to pester him about Kate. No this was about Megan.

"I didn't come to check up on Kate, Jack. I came to check on Megan."

Jack stopped scrubbing his shirt and gazed at Juliet.

"So how is she? Megan?"

A smile crept to Juliet's lips as she finished testing the infant's reflexes.

"You have a very healthy little girl Jack."

A hint of a smirk crossed Jack's lips as he went back to scrubbing his green shirt.

"Well I do have you to thank Juliet. Without your help, Megan wouldn't be here. Neither would Kate."

Juliet bit her lip and shook her head. The weight she bared was sometimes unbearable. Of all the mothers and babies she'd desperately tried to help on this island, she could only give herself credit for saving three. Ethan, Megan, and Aaron.

"If you and Kate decide to have a second child I think I'm very close to a solution with my serum. To be fair Jack; I saved Megan. _Not_ Kate."

Jack and Juliet could talk at tedium about the subject but it wouldn't change anything. Megan was hope. Jack puzzled by Juliet's words questioned her.

"If you didn't save Kate then who did?"

Juliet broke eye contact with Jack and peered back at the happy baby in the cradle beside her. Jack saw something was bothering her.

"It was a man called Jacob. He saved Kate."

Hands pausing over his soapy green shirt, Jack wasn't sure if he should be grateful to this Jacob guy or fearful. Swallowing the fear and refusing to count to five his determination took over.

"Where can I find Jacob?"

Juliet had clear confusion written on her face.

"Jack I don't… I don't know where to find him. It doesn't work like that. You can't just go looking for him. He shows up whenever he feels like it."

Jack had just hit a brick wall. He knew he somehow had to get into contact with Jacob. _How_ was going to be the hard part. He had to make amends with Kate first.

To Be Continued…


	18. The man with the answers

**Chapter 18: The man with the answers**

Author: ZeusFluff

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 6/26/15. Date Finished: 7/1/15.

* * *

Jack knew the answers he sought were with Jacob. But he didn't know where to start. He'd distracted himself enough with finishing his laundry now he was starting on Kate's. The little girl in the cradle needed him and she needed her mother. This was a crucial point in her new life.

"Where am I going to find the person who saved mommy?"

Megan let out a cry and Jack saw her tiny bottom lip begin to tremble. But not from being cold. She was frightened. Her cries became more frantic.

"Hey what's the matter sweetie? What's got you so scared?"

Jack did the only thing he could think of which always seemed to calm Megan. He set her against his chest and left shoulder rubbing her tiny back. She liked the sound of his heartbeat. Soon her cries were murmurs and whimpers as her wrinkly and pink tiny fingers of her left hand wrapped themselves around a piece of his shirt. Pressing a kiss against her soft dark hair, he kept comforting her.

"There we go baby girl. There's nothing to be afraid of. Daddy won't let anything happen to you."

Megan's whimpers were coming few and far between and the spinal surgeon watched her fall into a peaceful slumber. Whispers began at the tree line and they grew louder. Jack whirled around and came once again face to face with his 'father.'

"Jack you really think you can escape me that easily?"

The signature smirk that Jack shared with him spread over his face.

"I know what you are."

Jack held Megan a little closer to his chest and shielded her from the black smoke monster in the form of his father.  
"Megan's grown so much since the last time I saw her."

He held Megan away from the black smoke monster. Shielding her in the crook of his neck as if he could make her invisible to him.

"You can't have her."

Christian shook his head and gave a laugh, only making the hairs on Jack's arms stand on end.

"Innocence can be corrupted son. Rescue is coming for you and when it does, I'm going too. I want off this island just as badly as you do. One exception is you'll be dead."

Jack felt hands at his throat, everything a blur. Someone else had taken Megan from him. Through blurred vision, he thought he saw a familiar bundle in Juliet's arms. Darkness was seeping into the edges of his eyesight. He felt the breath escaping his lungs as the smoke monster squeezed his hands around Jack's throat. Then darkness came.

The first thing he heard when he could breathe again was Juliet's voice.

"Come on Jack. Come back to us."

He sputtered as he took a few painful breaths in. Coughing wracked his body and when he opened his eyes, he could see tears in Kate's eyes. Opening his eyes, he felt Kate's hands on his scruffy cheeks. He'd need to shave again.

"I thought… I thought I lost you!"

Juliet stepped in and Kate stood up taking Megan from Hurley. Megan fussed in Kate's arms and she comforted her.

"Hey sweet girl, daddy's going to be just fine."

Half managing to sit up Jack sunk back down again.

"Take it easy Jack. Here have some water."

Nearly choking on the water that Juliet gave him, Jack took tentative sips. His throat was raw and hurt.

"I have to find Jacob."

The crowd had dispersed. Now it was only Juliet, Kate, and Megan. Juliet grabbed him by the shoulders and shook her head.

"Jack I told you, it's not that simple to find him. He shows up when he wants. But if you really want to go after him take Kate with you. James and I can watch over Megan while you're gone."

Kate blinked her eyes at Jack and Juliet.

"Go where Jack? Who's Jacob?"

Jack managing to sit up completely stared at Kate whom had situated herself next to him on the sand.

"He's the one who saved your life Kate."

* * *

"Jack we've been looking for three days, if we haven't found him by now I don't think we will."

Jack kept walking forward determined to find the man who saved his girlfriend. Kate stopped mid-step and took a drink of water.

"If we keep looking we'll find him Kate. We just have to be patient."

Kate threw Jack a disapproving look.

"You being patient? Since when have you ever been patient?"

Jack's signature smirk crossed his handsome features.

"Since Megan was born."

Kate gave a chuckle and then gasped when she saw a man with blond hair and gray eyes staring at them. His clothes were ancient.

"I believe you've been looking for me. My name is Jacob."

Stepping forward Jack debated whether to shake hands with this man or not.

"Jack Shephard."

Jacob smiled and his eyes crinkled at the corners.  
"I know who you are Jack. You came to ask me something."

Jack folded his arms across his chest and let out a small laugh.

"Of course you do. So tell me, is this really Kate standing next to me?"

Over the last few days, Jack began having doubts about whether Kate was really herself or not. The crinkly smile Jacob gave Jack made the pit in his stomach dissolve.

"I assure you Jack that the woman standing next to you is Kate. She wasn't supposed to die in that room in the medical station."

Jack had been afraid since Kate had come back but he'd never said anything thinking that it was just nerves over having her ripped away from him and then returned in one piece.  
"You're being serious here?"

Jacob grabbed for a twig and twisted a leaf off it before tossing it to the jungle floor below him.

"Of course I am. I think the real question you want to ask me is: _How_ did I bring Kate back?"

A pit was forming in his stomach again but his mind was telling him everything would be all right.

"Yes how did you?"

Smiling he picked up another twig and twisted it.

"That would require your entire lifetime to explain Jack. You just have to trust me when I say that Kate was _never_ meant to die in that room when Megan was born."

As Jack tried to ask Jacob another question he disappeared. He wanted more answers than he got. Jacob was a very cryptic man.

To Be Continued…


	19. Some questions answered

**Chapter 19: Some questions answered**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/2/15. Date Finished: 7/2/15.

* * *

Jacob had answered some of Jack's questions. More precisely, he answered only one of the questions Jack had asked of him. _Was Kate who she said she was?_ Jack had settled himself on the bed and watched both his girls with a grin. It disappeared from his face when fear gripped Kate's voice.

"Jack come here."

Hair prickling on his forearms he scooted towards the end of the bed and glanced at Kate.

"What's wrong?"

Megan's tiny arms flailed as she cried. Jack assessed the situation carefully trying to drown out the crashing waves as he listened to Megan's breathing for a minute. A sigh of frustration left his mouth as he ran a hand through his hair nervously.

"Damn it. Why didn't I see this before?"

All Kate could stare at was Megan's tiny lips; they were turning a strange tint of blue.

"See what Jack? What's going on, and why are Megan's lips turning blue?"

Jack grew serious as he ran a hand through his hair a second time. Everything he'd done for Megan seemed like a total waste. He cradled the infant in his arms as if she were more delicate than crystal and tried to hide a single tear that was forming in his left eye.

"Megan has a congenital heart defect. Only correctible by surgery and a new heart. Of course, the only way to diagnose this is to listen to her heart and get an ultrasound."

Jack saw Kate's lip begin to tremble. He tucked Megan into her arms and Kate tried to soothe her cries.

"Juliet can do something right? She can do the surgery?"

Megan's cries continued as Jack ran a thumb over her left foot to try to calm her. It only made her angry.

"I can talk to her about it Kate. But neither of us are cardiac specialists. I'm just a spinal surgeon and Juliet is a fertility doctor. I wouldn't even know where to start. I'm not even sure if she's had any experience in dealing with infants with this specific congenital defect."

Continuing to run his thumb over Megan's foot Jack tried to calm the fussy little girl in Kate's arms.

"Hey. It's ok. Daddy will make you all better. I'm going to get you off this island if it's the last thing I do."

Kate rocked Megan hoping that she would soon fall asleep comfortable in her arms.

"Shh baby its ok. Mommy's got you."

To Be Continued…


	20. Hope is all we can ask for

**Chapter 20: Hope is all we can ask for**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/3/15. Date Finished: 7/4/15.

* * *

Jack trudged through the sand towards Juliet and Sawyer's tent making it difficult for Kate to keep up with him. Megan's wailing hadn't stopped and it worried him. Kate managed to catch up with a few quick strides of her own.

"Jack why is she still crying?"

Megan's red face got a shade redder as Jack answered his girlfriend.

"She's in pain."

A look of pain crossed Kate's own face. But Jack knew it wasn't physical pain, it was emotional. Kate could see an angry storm brewing behind Jack's seemingly calm expression. Storming over to the front of the tent of Juliet and Sawyer he found her cutting his hair.

"We need to talk Juliet. Out Sawyer. This is private."

Kate shot Sawyer a look of apology and shrugged her shoulders. Juliet put a hand on his shoulder and gave a small smile.

"James its ok. Just go for a walk down the beach. It'll do you some good. Besides I'm sure Aaron would love to have someone help him build his sandcastle over there."

Jaw set, Sawyer stomped off like a child ready to have a tantrum. Turning away from Sawyer Juliet gave her full attention to the howling little baby girl in Jack's arms.

"Jack! Why did you tell me her lips were blue? We need to get her to the medical station immediately and onto monitors."

Juliet ran a finger over Megan's arm and sighed continuing her thought.

"Shh. It's ok sweetie. When did you first notice this?"

Jack rocked an angry looking Megan and tried to speak over her wailing.

"Maybe 20 minutes ago. Kate was the one who discovered her symptoms."

Juliet's eyes roamed over Megan's tiny body wracking her brain for other symptoms she might have.

"She seems to be having trouble catching her breath. Could be from crying for almost 30 minutes though. Let's get her to the medical station and see what's going on exactly."

Jack had never felt so patient before. He'd felt awkward with Aaron after he was born. It wasn't until Juliet informed him that Claire was his half-sister and that Aaron was his nephew that he felt more relaxed around them. Trying to keep Megan comfortable all the while cooing at her, Jack found that as frustrating as fatherhood was sometimes, he had grown comfortable with it.

"Hey. Everything's going to be fine sweetie. Daddy is going to figure out what is going on with you."

All the way to the medical station Jack went over in his head all the things that could be done to help Megan if they were on the mainland. She'd be surrounded by a dozen heart specialists at least and hopefully on a donor list in less than a year. Of course this was only wishful thinking. When they arrived at the medical station he stole a glance over at Kate whose eyes were red-rimmed from crying. He could tell she was at her wits end, but she was trying to stay calm. Inside the room behind the lockers Jack gingerly set Megan down on the exam table her little arms and legs flailing in every direction.

"Shh. Let's figure out what's going on with your heart sweetie."

Juliet took over after she cleaned her hands. Running a gentle hand over Megan's stomach she hoped it would calm her slightly. For a moment it seemed to be working but then her wailing started up again when Juliet placed a quarter size of conducting gel onto her chest.

"I know sweetie that's cold. I'm sorry."

Jack and Juliet stared at the black and white image of Megan's heart. The squishing sound that it made filled the entire room. Zooming in on the moving image Juliet pointed out the evidence with her index finger.

"Here. You see this Jack? She has two holes in her left ventricle the size of a pin. But the longer we wait, the bigger they'll become. Now why it wasn't apparent to us before I'm not sure. There are two options here: A: We perform major open-heart surgery on her to repair the damage. At this stage in her development though, her organs are still paper-thin. Anything we try and fix will just tear more. Or B: We make her comfortable. I'd have a third option but we don't exactly have a list of donors for heart transplants on the island."

He wasn't accepting Juliet's answer. Option B wasn't an option at all. It felt like giving up to Jack.

"Why are you giving up Juliet?"

Concentrating on wiping the gel from Megan's chest, Juliet ran a free finger over Megan's cheek. Shoulders slightly slumped she barely made eye contact with Jack.

"I'm not giving up Jack. I'm being practical. You of all people should know that. The best I can do for now is make her comfortable until we can find another solution."

Kate had enough and burst into tears. All she wanted to do was scoop her baby up and run from the room, run as far away as she could. A lump began to form in Jack's throat making a difficult to breathe.

"If we aren't able to find a viable solution, how will she…?"

Juliet didn't like this part of her job. As she had once told Jack she wasn't used to being around dying people. She tried to remain emotionless, detached from the situation and yet leave room for empathy only to come up short.

"Most likely in her sleep."

Turning away from a tense Jack, Juliet placed the palms of her hands on the metal countertop and held back a sob. Slamming her right fist into the offending piece of furniture she let the sob out. Jack giving her a minute went to Kate who was still trying to soothe a screaming Megan. Looking up at the ceiling Juliet yelled, almost forgetting the two frazzled parents with a very ill baby behind her.

"When will you stop tearing children away from their parents!"

Shoulders still slumped, Juliet regained her composure and blotted her face with a couple of tissues. Facing Jack, Juliet felt his strong gentle hands on her shoulders. His eyes held a large storm in them. Whether it became fierce or not remained to be seen.

"Something tells me this happened before on this island. Tell me what happened."

Juliet had seen Jack angry, but she played it down. Swallowing she went about fiddling with the drawers behind her.

"Megan isn't the first on this island to have a congenital heart defect. There was one other. His mother was bedridden for her entire pregnancy. She could barely stand. I monitored her closely 24/7. She had three injections a day. It wasn't pleasant for either of us. She made it to her six month mark and went into labor. Same as Kate. But I couldn't it stop it. The mother died on the table of a pulmonary embolism."

Jack's eyes softened as he thought of Megan. Tears were beginning to shine in his eyes but he was doing his utmost best to hide them.

"What happened to the boy?"

Juliet had her eyes on a piece of dirt on Jack's brown shirt.

"He died in-utero. Heart failure due to a 3 millimeter hole in his left ventricle. Hope is all we can ask for Jack. Megan was a miracle. There has to be another solution to our problem. For now though, I can give her something for the pain and to help her sleep. She's exhausted."

His stomach tied in knots, Jack knew that they would have tests to perform once Megan got some rest. He knew now that they had to get the hell off this island.

To Be Continued…


	21. Keeping a candle lit so to speak

**Chapter 21: Keeping a candle lit so to speak**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/4/15. Date Finished: 7/5/15.

* * *

It was day nine and Kate had been cooped up in the medical station with Megan 24/7. She ate all her meals there and sometimes Megan slept atop her mother's chest as a comfort measure. Jack crept up on the pair who were currently resting on an adjustable cot Juliet found stored in a room down the hall. The scene before him would be defined as picturesque in his eyes had it not been for the situation they faced. Kate had Megan nestled against her bare chest under a blanket. Placing a kiss to her crown Jack took a seat on a stool next to his girls.

"How's our girl doing?"

Opening her eyes, Kate frowned.

"Jack she won't eat."

The sleeping baby let out a whine and stuck a left hand outside of the blanket as if to show Jack she was there.

"She's probably just too tired."

With wide eyes Kate kept shaking her head.

"Maybe Jack but could it be something else?"

Jack furrowed his eyebrows in worry and stroked a finger against Megan's left hand which moved against Kate's skin.

"Try to get her to eat."

Kate adjusted Megan under the blanket and watched her for a moment. Megan let out another whine and tried to find her meal only failing at her task. Looking under the blanket, Jack encouraged his daughter to try again.

"It's ok Megan. Try again. No rush sweetie. Take your time."

Jack was starting to notice a pattern. Megan was much more tired than she usually was lately. A teary-eyed Kate diverted her attention to Jack who was encouraging Megan to keep going as he reached a hand under the warm blanket to stroke her small head.

"I don't understand Jack; she's asleep most of the time now and when she is awake all she does is whine, cry or scream. Tell me there is light at the end of this tunnel Jack. Please?"

Secretly Jack had been hoping for a miracle. He observed Megan as she struggled to latch onto her mother's breast. She was getting frustrated and let out a scream. Kate let Jack take Megan from her arms and straightened herself up before removing the blanket, placing it on the table beside the cot she stayed lying on. Megan continued to scream as Jack set her down on the exam table across from Kate. Mindful of the assortment of wires attached her chest to monitor her heart, he found the stethoscope Juliet had discarded on the counter and placed the earpieces into his ears.

"I know this is a little cold baby girl. Daddy will be done in a minute ok?"

Jack didn't know when he'd taken over for Juliet. Taking care of babies and mother's hadn't been his primary objective. Claire and Aaron had been the first in a long time. His daughter was his responsibility. He felt he had to take care of her himself though he knew both him and Juliet were a team. They had to work together. As he listened, he correlated with the monitors next to him.

"A steady 142. We'll have to take another look at her heart again to see if the hole in her left ventricle is bigger."

Going over what Kate had told him; he found the reason why Megan had suddenly lost her appetite.

"Megan's having trouble eating because she's exhausted all the time. Her heart has to work harder to pump blood to the rest of her body."

Kate held back the dam of tears that were threatening to come storming through at any moment.

"Jack I want… I want her lying on my chest when she goes. I don't want her to go alone…"

Jack didn't want to hear Kate talking like that. He felt that they were close to finding a solution to Megan's heart problem. Him and Juliet.

"I don't want to hear you talking like that Kate. _Nothing_ is going to happen to Megan. I won't let it. Neither will Juliet. We're close Kate. Juliet and I have been going over different procedures that may in theory fix her heart."

Kate shot a glare up at Jack and took Megan back, putting her under the blanket she draped over her. She waited until Megan settled against her chest comfortably before speaking.

"In _theory_ Jack. You don't even know if some of these surgeries _might_ work."

Jack was exhausted himself, and he didn't want to leave his family but he had to check up on the people back at the beach.

"It _could_ work. Juliet and I will keeping researching. We'll find something."

Kate ran a finger down Megan's arm and then peered up at Jack.

"When you and Juliet find something substantial and worth the time to perform it you run it by me first. Got it? We decide things together. You are _not_ going to crack our daughter's chest open without my permission. I _am_ her mother."  
Jack felt a tad wounded by the tone in Kate's voice. She did however have a point. He was only thinking of the outcome. The bigger picture.

"You don't think I _don't_ want what's best for our daughter? I _am_ her father. Look I don't want to fight with you Kate. We have to stick together to get through this. Megan is going to make it. I know it. Why are you giving up?"

Kate shaking her head, cast a sad glance down at the sick baby nestled against her warm chest under the blanket.

"I'm being practical Jack. Megan's not getting any better."

Jack was already a flurry of flustered emotions and running on 2 hours of sleep every night didn't help his cause.

"Just give us some more time Kate. We'll figure this out. Megan will be fine. You'll see."

Kate gave Jack a watery smile and let out a small sob.

"I hope your right Jack. I can't lose her. She was so strong when she came into the world. But then this sprung up and she just seems so fragile."

Jack knew in his heart that everything would be alright, he just had to believe in himself.

"She'll be as good as new. I promise Kate."

Kate wished she could share his hope and enthusiasm. All she could do was keep a candle lit so to speak.

To Be Continued…


	22. A tiny light at the end of the tunnel

**Chapter 22: A tiny light at the end of the tunnel**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/6/15. Date Finished: 7/7/15.

* * *

"Jack!"

A giant sob issued from Kate and Jack scrambled from the other side of the room to her side. She sat on the adjustable cot and rocked Megan back and forth. Jack put a hand on her back and rubbed it in large sweeping strokes.

"Kate what is it?"

For a few moments Kate said nothing. She only continued rocking Megan in her arms the sound of her sobs were breaking Jack's heart. Jack let adrenaline fuel him as he took a quiet Megan from a defiant Kate. She kept hold tight of Megan. She wouldn't let him take her.

"No. Let me hold her a little longer. Jack please."

Jack ran a hand over Megan's downy soft hair and bowed his head for a few seconds. He watched as her little head moved and she opened her eyes.

"Kate look. She's ok. Megan's ok. You were having a nightmare."

Letting out a breath Jack tried using more of a tone of reassurance.

"You were having a nightmare. It's alright."

Kate sniffled and looked up, Jack followed her gaze only to find Jacob standing near the door to the room.

"A child should not have to suffer. Megan was not meant to deal with this ailment."

Eyes wide with disbelief Jack stared at Jacob.

"Do you mean to tell me Juliet and I will find something to save her? Soon?"

Jacob nodded his head but continued to look serious as he averted his gaze towards the hallway.

"Megan will be all right now. Go and help Juliet. She needs you right now."

Something akin to nausea gripped his stomach but he steeled himself. Something about the tone of Jacob's voice told him something was wrong. Hurriedly kissing the top of Kate and Megan's head, Jack scurried out into the hallway. The lights flickered a bit as he searched for Juliet. He found her a few feet from the door, gripping the handle of the hatch door. He heard her give a grunt of pain. Raising his eyebrows he slowly approached her.

"Juliet what's going…?"

The last word died on his lips as he turned Juliet so she was facing him. Her hands were drenched in blood. Taking a few seconds to verify the situation, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her back down the hallway. Her voice was shaky and barely above a whisper.

"James doesn't know…"

Tears streaked her face as confusion began to make its mark across it. When they reentered the room Kate and Megan were in, Jacob was nowhere to be found. Kate sat stock-straight on the cot and held Megan a little tighter.

"Oh my god Jack. What happened?"

Juliet began mumbling but Jack was trying to keep her quiet as he concentrated on getting everything under control.

"Juliet I need you to focus on me. Tell me exactly what happened."

She looked away and shut her eyes.

"The island is punishing me…"

Jack wanted to scoff at her comment, but what she really needed right now was comfort not sarcasm.

"Look at me Juliet. The island isn't punishing you. These things happen. I'll get you something to help you relax."

A piece of him was angry that Juliet hadn't mentioned any of this. He'd known that she and Sawyer had thought about starting a family, but that was the extent of it. Sighing and doing his best to keep the frustration at bay, Jack kept his focus on Juliet's face.

"I'm sorry to have to ask you this but how far along are you? Or were you?"

Looking away again Juliet struggled for words at first. At last finding her voice, she croaked out two words.

"Six weeks."

Sympathy lining his handsome features Jack rested a hand on her knee.

"I'm very sorry Juliet. Would you like me to get James for you…?  
As Jack finished his question to Juliet he heard footsteps behind him and Sawyer's gruff voice, but it was filled to the brim with worry.

"What's going on blondie? Doc why is she bleeding?"

Jack looked Sawyer straight in the eye as his frown deepened.

"She's having a miscarriage. I'm very sorry."

Sawyer hated when Jack called him by his real name. Jaw hard-set, Sawyer looked about ready to start throwing punches in Jack's direction.

"Well can't you stop it?"

A sigh escaped Jack's parted lips as he shook his head no.

"I can get the bleeding under control, but the baby is gone."

Jack mentally beat himself up. He'd already been in their shoes once. He was trying to stay in doctor mode though. If he let his emotions take over, it wouldn't be good. Sawyer's gaze turned dark and soon the accusing remarks began.

"This is your fault doc!"

Sawyer always blamed Jack for some unforeseen accident. Jack took the high road and reasoned with him instead.

"Look Sawyer these things happen. It could've been any number of things: stress, sleep deprivation, not eating properly… The list is pretty extensive. Even after I get all this under control, I'll need her to stay absolutely still."

This time Sawyer didn't argue with Jack. He clamped his mouth shut and ran a hand through Juliet's blond locks.

"Everything will be ok baby. I promise."

* * *

Everything now under control, Jack seated himself on the edge of the adjustable cot. Kate looked more like herself than she had just a couple of hours ago. Her cheeks were rosy with life and her smile was brighter than the sun. Jack peeked under the blanket to find Megan enjoying a meal.

"She's eating Jack. I didn't have to help her. She did it all by herself. Do you think this is the sign Jacob was talking about?"

Relieved and yet curious at the same time, Jack tried to process everything Jacob had told the couple.

"I don't know. We'll have to wait until Juliet recovers to find out. In the meantime, I'll be looking after both of you."

Kate smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Juliet deserves to be happy. Sawyer too. All Juliet ever wanted was just to go home. Sawyer's made her happy. I'm very sorry this happened to her."

To Be Continued…

A/N: So, I kind of diverted the focus away from Jack, Kate and Megan for this chapter. I felt that Juliet and Sawyer needed a little spotlight on them. Next chapter will be less angsty. I promise.


	23. Everything is about time

**Chapter 23: Everything is about time**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/8/15. Date Finished: 7/8/15.

* * *

Kate was at her wits' end. A day after Megan started eating again, she suddenly began to have difficulties once again.

"Jack I can't watch this."

Jack froze, his hands hovering over the tiny tubing that would help Megan to eat. Feeding her with a bottle hadn't helped either. She just didn't have the energy to suckle.

"It's ok Kate. You don't have to watch. I'll make this as quick as possible. She won't feel a thing. I gave her something to sleep so that I could put this tubing in."

Megan had lost a little weight due to the fact that she was unable to eat. At the thought of it, it made Jack physically ill. He would've had Juliet assist him with this particular procedure, but, he was giving her and Sawyer some time to grieve. He would need to check on her again in less than an hour.

"She'll uh she'll be able to eat once you put that tube in her?"

Jack could hear the uncertainty in Kate's voice. But his main focus was getting the tubing into Megan so that she could eat. Taking a breath, he carefully and gently inserted the tubing. Swallowing, he felt someone wipe the sweat from his forehead.

"Hey you're doing great Jack. You just have to believe in yourself. Forget all the stuff your father ever told you about being a failure. You DO have what it takes."  
Nothing was ever that simple to Jack. He and Kate locked eyes for a minute and in hers he saw a deep-seated belief in him that seemed to span millions of oceans.

"You're the only one that's ever believed in me Kate. Thank you."

Kate finished wiping the sweat away from his forehead and followed the tubing connected to a machine in the corner of the room.

"How will she eat Jack?"

Jack traced Megan's tiny fingers and eyed the machine.

"The tubing goes down into her stomach and the other end is connected to the machine there in the corner. It would be best if she got milk from you. It'll strengthen her immune system."

A few tears found themselves trailing down Kate's cheek.

"How is it that my milk will strengthen her immune system Jack? Her heart is working twice as hard just to keep her alive! She can hardly breathe! When is this going to stop Jack?"

Jack flinched but tried to shrug it off before Kate could notice she'd hit a raw nerve. He was just as frustrated as Kate was about the situation. Giving Megan the best care he could with what they had was all he could do.

"Juliet and I will fix this Kate. Just give us some more time. There is always another option. I haven't given up. Megan is still fighting. She has been fighting since the day she took her first breath."

Sighing, Kate let her shoulders relax a little and scooped Megan into her arms. Placing a kiss atop her soft forehead, Kate nestled her up against her shoulder and the crook of her neck. She could see Sawyer eyeing them from his spot next to a sleeping Juliet.

"That baby looks good on you freckles."

She knew that Sawyer was only deflecting the spotlight off him and Juliet to make himself feel better. Kate could see pain etched into his features, but like Jack, he was good at hiding it.

"Sawyer, I'm… I'm sorry."

Sawyer shrugged it off but didn't respond. He turned his attention back to Juliet and ran a hand through her knotted blonde hair. Jack watched the monitors and ran a hand over Megan's brown hair.

"Remember when you went into labor with her? You wanted to have her under that tree less than half a mile from here?"

Kate groaned and laughed for a minute.

"She felt like she was coming out Jack. What do you expect? I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe and I felt like I was drowning in pain. Claire told me it was bad when she had Aaron, but I had no idea. Would I go through all that again? Ask me that in a few years."

Jack chuckled and then ran a hand over Megan's head one more time.

"Everything is about time Kate. You'll see."

A small smile spread across his face as he gave a light kiss to Megan's hand.

"Everything is about time. I'll make you better baby girl. That is a promise."

To Be Continued…


	24. How can I trust your promise Jack?

**Chapter 24: How can I trust your promise Jack?**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/9/15. Date Finished: 7/11/15.

* * *

Jack was always good at keeping promises to Kate. But she wasn't so sure about the one he made for their daughter only three days earlier. _Could he really fix her? Especially without a new heart?_ With a free hand she reached and grabbed Jack by the crease of his elbow.

"How can I trust your promise Jack?"

He knew what Kate was asking, but he felt betrayed because she was asking about the promise and if she could trust him.

"So you're saying that you can't trust me? Or my promise to you and Megan?"

The fragile looking baby in Kate's arms began to stir and Jack quickly relented putting a hand on her small back. A whimper escaped her mouth. Her arms flailed about and her hand grabbed for the tube in her mouth. Jack put his index finger up to her right hand to stop her from tugging on the feeding tube.

"Oh no sweetie. That needs to stay in there."

Megan let out a yelp as Jack yet again guided her hand away from her mouth. She was angry now and swatted at Jack's hands, her movements still unsteady and learning about the space around her. The monitor's loud monotonous rhythm picked up speed and Kate's eyes grew wide with fear.

"Jack her heart is racing like a jack-hammer."

Kate rubbed Megan's back but she grew angrier. Or was she scared? Everything blended together these days since neither of them got much sleep. Jack automatically in doctor-mode went rummaging through the drawers looking for a syringe. He felt a smaller hand on his shoulder. At first thinking it was Kate he replied.

"I'm coming give me a couple of more seconds."

When he turned he saw that it wasn't Kate. Instead standing before him was a pale and death-like looking Juliet who swayed on her feet but managed to steady herself with the counter.

"She'll need .1 of that Jack. She'll go into cardiac arrest if you don't give it to her."

With sympathy in his eyes Jack steadied her and shook his head.

"Juliet you really shouldn't be up and walking around right now. You're going to need a blood transfusion. You lost a lot of blood. What's your blood type?"

Juliet's tired eyes wandered to Jack's. Her usually bright blue eyes were slightly dimmed and were almost a pale gray.

"AB positive. I have reserves of my own blood in the bio-hazard container in the corner over there."

Nodding Jack found what he was looking for and shut the drawer.

"When I get her settled there is something I need to tell you. But right now I would like you to go and lie back down."

Juliet closed her mouth and went back to the cot and lie down on it. Sawyer had gone back to their tent to get her a change of clothes so it was just her, Jack, Kate and Megan. Lying on her side on the cot, she watched as Jack pushed the drugs into Megan's iv. After about a minute, she seemed to calm and quit screaming. Sighing, Juliet looked away from Jack as he approached her. She wasn't sure why she felt so embarrassed. She just was. Taking a breath and letting it out Jack took a bag of Juliet's reserve blood hung it on the IV stand he'd situated next to her cot.

"Make a fist for me. There we go. Yesterday when I did an ultrasound on you I found something… Maybe it's better if I just showed you."

Juliet felt her stomach begin to churn. _He found something? Like what?_ Silently holding her breath she watched as Jack turned on the machine. The conducting gel was freezing, giving her goosebumps. Jack froze for a millisecond when he began to hear the sound of a heartbeat.

"A heartbeat. But that's not what I saw… That's impossible."

She couldn't help herself. A laugh came out of her mouth, tears soon following them. A choked sob came tumbling out, but it was out of happiness not sadness.

"By all accounts Jack, this is a miracle."

Juliet put a hand up to her face and let out another sob.

"I don't understand."

Jack was puzzled by this. He did not understand any of this one bit. The day before he'd heard no heartbeat. There was nothing there. Juliet broke his thoughts.

"I don't either, but something about this was meant to be."

She couldn't believe what was happening. She'd thought that she had lost the most important thing to her. _Her baby._ Continuing her thought she touched the screen lightly.

"It's healthy right?"

Jack stared at the black and white image on the screen. _How could he have been wrong?_

"Yes. There's a strong heartbeat. You have a long road ahead of you Juliet. You're going to need those injections twice a day, but you can't do it alone. Let me help you. Have you had any nausea? Vomiting?"

Juliet nodded her head and fingered the screen one more time.

"Both. More in the afternoon though. Don't worry I'll let you know if I have any problems. Like I said before, doctors make the worst patients."

Jack eyed her again and saw her scratch at an invisible itch on her left arm.

"Is there enough of the serum for you and the baby for the next 7 months?"

Juliet let out a somewhat dry laugh, however not meaning it to sound that way she looked him dead in the eye with a small smile.

"Jack, I've got enough of the serum stock-piled for the next 50 years. I'm constantly tweaking the formula though to make it better and more effective. I guess I'm the second guinea pig huh?"

He'd never thought to ask what was in the serum. But he trusted Juliet. It had saved his daughter's life. Letting a chuckle out Jack nodded.

"Yeah. You have to promise me right now that you will take it easy. Take a break when you need to and stay off your feet if they start to swell. Keep hydrated and stay out of the sun as much as possible."

Sawyer walked in with a bundle of clothes and saw the smile on Juliet's face. Worry at first tinged his features and then a smirk planted itself squarely on his lips.

"What are you smiling at blondie?"

Juliet lifted her left hand motioned with her index finger. He leaned down and listened as she whispered into his ear. When he stood straight again his face was a mixture of pale white sheet and rose colored.

"You're serious? Doc you're not yanking our chain are ya?"

Jack shook his head and wiped his hands.

"No, and don't ask me how to explain this. I don't even know how it's possible. Juliet said it was a sign. But I don't believe in signs. I guess this is congratulations. Try to keep her out of the sun and off her feet as much as possible now. She's got a very long road ahead of her. It's not going to be easy."

Jack let the couple soak in the moment of happiness and went back over to Kate who seemed to be sulking on her cot and rubbing a slightly fussy Megan. He put a hand on her head and with the other rubbed the bottom of her left foot. Her eyes closed and she drifted off to sleep.

"Oh. She wanted daddy close too. Looks like I've got my hands full."

To Be Continued…

A/N: Surprise! You didn't really think I'd let Sawyer and Juliet go through all that did you? This is the island, anything is possible. Even the impossible.


	25. Hope in a given moment

**Chapter 25: Hope in a given moment**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/12/15. Date Finished: 7/14/15.

* * *

Jack had always believed in giving the _facts_ to patients, not the 1 percent chance of _hope._ But what he didn't realize was that hope could come in a given moment. What he'd given Juliet and Sawyer was _hope._ Kate brought him crashing back to reality when she pulled him in for a light kiss. Inhaling sharply, he felt an invisible electric charge. A smile curled on her lips she patted the cot with her free hand while the other kept Megan nestled under the blanket on her chest. She lowered her voice so that only they could hear.

"How is it that Juliet still has her baby Jack?"

Scratching at his five o-clock shadow Jack shook his head and sunk onto the cot.

"You know I can't talk about that Kate. That is between me and her."

Kate finished his sentence.

"Doctor/patient confidentiality. I know. Are you any closer to finding out how to fix Megan's problem?"

He ran a hand over his head and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"It's going to take time Kate. I will stay up all night tonight if I have to. To get the answers that I'm looking for. Megan's heart rate is holding steady. She's on 4 percent oxygen. I'll up it a half a percent if she needs it. She's a little wheezy this morning. Her breathing should even out with the 2 percent increase in oxygen I've given her. She's comfortable for the moment."

Kate nodded running a gentle finger over Megan's tiny hand. Everything had fallen apart so fast in recent weeks.

"Jack how can a healthy baby go from strong to fragile in just one month?"

She knew it was a stupid question to ask. But maybe it was justified.

"Sometimes these things can be hard to trace. Juliet and I a few days after you… Passed we checked her heart. We couldn't find a single thing wrong. It may have developed over time or it could've been too small to detect. Juliet thinks we might be able to fix her heart. But we'll have to wait another four months before her heart is strong enough."

Eyes lighting up Kate let a smile grace her lips.

"She'll be strong enough by then?"

A slight nod of his head, Jack ran an index finger over Megan's cheek to comfort her. He'd done everything he could in the last couple of weeks to make sure his daughter was comfortable.

"She's holding on. She's a fighter. You need some rest. Get some sleep. I'll watch over her for a little while. We're a team remember?"

Kate smirked and handed Megan over to Jack.  
"I haven't forgotten. Don't let me sleep more than a couple of hours."

Nodding in agreement Jack felt he was starting feel like he wasn't a failure anymore. His father had been wrong. Hope could come in a given moment. Not just for his daughter but for both Sawyer and Juliet. There were many things that happened on the island, things that in reality, in the real world would be completely impossible. He didn't quite understand it all, but he'd have to start accepting it sooner or later. His stubborn nature and defiance blocked him though.

To Be Continued…


	26. A life saved

**Chapter 26: A life saved**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/14/15. Date Finished: 7/19/15.

* * *

"Jack are you sure you're ready for this? We could wait a couple of more weeks if you don't feel she's ready for the surgery."

Juliet adjusted Megan's iv line and then looked Jack straight in the eye.

"We can do this Juliet. Megan's strong enough now. We can fix her heart."

Although Jack meant what he said he could feel his hands shaking. Taking a breath he counted to five in his head. _1\. I'm going to be fine. 2. This is going to work. 3. Get ahold of yourself Shephard. 4. Megan will be fine. 5. You are not dad._ Letting out a dry humorless laugh, he noticed Juliet giving him a quizzical stare.

"What?"

Clearing his throat he motioned for the scalpel on the tray next to Juliet.

"Nothing. I'll tell you later. Scalpel please."

Taking a breath of her own Juliet nodded and handed Jack the scalpel. She was just as nervous as he was, but she didn't show it. Jack continued his thought.

"Keep the suction below where I'm working."

* * *

"Don't worry freckles. The doc and Juliet know what they are doing. She's going to be fine. Would you stop pacing? You're going to wear a hole in the floor."

Kate chewed on her bottom lip and shook her head.

"I don't have any doubt about Jack's ability Sawyer. It's this _island._ Sometimes it gives you wonderful things, other times it takes them away. It took me away from Jack for a week. I can't explain where I was, but it definitely wasn't here."

Opening his mouth to say something, Sawyer instead let the words die on his lips. Closing his mouth he shook his head. He'd done a lot of growing up over the last 5 years. After all his sins, after all he'd done in the past, sometimes he didn't think he deserved Juliet. But she made him feel _normal._ She'd been just as hard headed as he was when he first met her. Distrustful of one another. But slowly, distrust turned into eventual trust. Kate broke the silence and changed subject.

"So what do you think you and Juliet are having? A boy or a girl?"

A smirk appeared over his face and he let his mind wander to Juliet.

"Definitely a boy."

Kate snorted and watched for Sawyer's reaction. He threw his hands up and gave a chuckle.

"What if it's a boy and a girl instead?"

At that Sawyer paled but recovered quickly.

"What? Twins? My bets on a boy freckles. Carry on the family name."

Kate snorted again and looked away. Her freckles stood out when she laughed.

"A boy huh?"

Nodding, his smirk stayed put on his face.

"Yup. My money's on a boy."

She laughed and kept shaking her head.

"Ok a boy. Let's see how that one pans out. My money's on a boy and a girl."

Falling into awkward silence the two Oceanic 815 survivors looked towards the door when it opened. At first a serious Jack and Juliet entered with an open plastic crib with Megan inside. Kate held her breath as she saw the overly large bandage surrounding her daughter's chest. She looked to Jack for guidance.

"How is she Jack?"

Jack made sure she was settled before he answered Kate.

"Megan did very well Kate. There were no complications with the surgery. Now it's simply a wait and see approach. Her color is already starting to come back. She's starting to pink up, which is already a good sign. She's going to want to pull at the bandages at her chest, so I've put these coverings over her hands. Their kind of like mittens to keep her hands warm, but not quite. Juliet said to leave the feeding tube in for a few more days. She needs to be lying on her back. We don't want to jostle her around too much right now."

Kate was relieved that Megan had made it through the surgery alright. Running a finger along the infants pink cheek Kate grinned and pulled Jack into a hug. Pulling her closer, he gave her a soft kiss at first. Letting it linger for a moment or two longer, Jack let a smile spread over his lips. Maybe he'd finally done something _right_ for once. His father had definitely been wrong. He hadn't failed. Not this time.

To Be Continued…


	27. An unexpected surprise

**Chapter 27: An unexpected surprise**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/20/15. Date Finished: 7/21/15.

* * *

Juliet was nervous and excited at the same time. She knew that Sawyer wanted a boy. But she wanted a little girl. Kate squeezed her hand before heading towards the door out into the hallway.

"I was nervous too before I found out I was having a girl. It was such a long time ago now. If you ever need any help, I'll be glad to help out. All of us are here to help you."

With that Juliet was grateful. A shaky breath escaped her mouth and she looked to Jack with a lopsided smile.

"I'm ready when you are."

Jack had taken every step in ensuring Juliet's survival. Just as she had done with Kate. His eyes wandered to Sawyer.

"Just so you know Sawyer I can't control what nature does. Would you really be disappointed if the two of you were having a girl?"

Sawyer brushed Jack off with the wave of his hand.

"Cut the suspense doc."

Nodding Jack turned on the machine and smiled at Juliet.

"Ok here we go."

Sawyer kept his hand threaded in Juliet's right one as the two perused the screen with their eyes. Jack continued his thought as he did his work.

"Looks like the two of you are having a boy…"

Jack had trailed off as he squinted at the screen. Sawyer let out a laugh.

"Well doc, looks like you and Kate lost the bet. We're having a boy."

Shaking his head Jack smirked. Pointing at the screen he saw Juliet gasp.

"The other one is a girl. She's not shy either."

Sawyer's face fell as he looked towards the door to the hallway.

"Freckles was right. How did she know?"

Juliet squeezed Sawyer's hand and smiled.

"Twins. There hasn't been a set in my family since my great-grandmother."

Jack nodded and took note of what Juliet said in his head.

"Ok. Do you know if there were complications with any of the births in your family?"

At this question Juliet nodded her head.

"My older sister Rachel. She had a prolapsed umbilical cord. Mom had to have a C-section."

Jack listened with concerned attention and put a hand on Juliet's left one.

"I will do everything I can to make sure this pregnancy goes smoothly. You have my word."

Juliet knew what someone's word could cost. She'd seen too much death on this island. She worried about what would happen if the injections weren't successful. Having spent years in a lab doing research trying to figure out how some women could conceive, while others couldn't. Her work was groundbreaking in the science world and she realized she had a real talent in helping people who had trouble.

Then she came to the island. At first she was very eager to help the women on the island and their dilemma. But when she lost a woman named Henrietta she felt the odds were stacking against her. Knowing that everything started at conception didn't help matters any. She often wondered if the problems the women were having with their pregnancies were due to the radiation on the island. She didn't want to be one of the women who lost their lives. Kate was her control case. She was alive and well and so was Megan.

"I know what someone's word can cost Jack. I gave my word to the women who lived on this island and I _failed_ them."

Jack shook his head and turned off the machine. He remembered when Juliet had confided in him about all the work she'd done on the island.

"But you haven't _failed_ Juliet. Megan is alive because of you. You are at the end of your second trimester and you haven't had so much as a hiccup of a problem. Your serum works Juliet. Give yourself some credit."

Carefully hopping down from the exam table Juliet nodded seriously. _Could she really be close?_

"Time will tell Jack."

Jack put a hand on her left one before she could walk away.

"Your serum may work Juliet, but I'd still like you to rest. Stay out of the sun and drink plenty of water."

When Juliet and Sawyer entered the hallway, Kate was sitting with a sleeping Megan in her arms. She smiled at Kate and ran a finger along Megan's cheek.

"We're having a boy and a girl."

Sawyer nodded and guided Juliet forward. _Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all._

To Be Continued…


	28. Danger surrounds us

**Chapter 28: Danger surrounds us**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/21/15. Date Finished: 7/24/15.

* * *

The air on the beach was thick with uninhibited fear. Jack could feel it in his sleep even as he tossed and turned. Kate shifted and bolted up next to Jack. Gripping his hand she saw him stir and open up his eyes.

"What is it?"

A sick feeling permeated his stomach and sent it into rolling waves of nausea. Peering around the darkened shelter Kate shivered. Leaning forward she reached a hand inside the cradle to check on Megan. She let out a frightened cry and began to scream.

"Hey sweetie, it's alright. Nothing's going to hurt you here. Did you have a bad dream?"

Scooping Megan into her arms, she could feel the infant's tiny body shaking. Despite the blanket covering her, her tiny hands were very cold.

"Jack her hands are freezing. She's not coming down with something is she?"

Jack rested his chin on her left shoulder and placed a tender kiss to her neck. Handing Megan to him, she gave a small kiss to the child's forehead. Wrapping Megan up in the blanket he held her against his chest, the warmth lulling her back into a restful slumber. His heart sank when he heard Sawyer yelling for him down the beach a ways.

"Doc! Juliet needs help!"

Giving Megan back to Kate, Jack vacated their shelter and navigated through the dark. Sawyer had lit a fire a few feet away from their tent. He'd drawn back the tarp so that Jack could enter.

"Sawyer tell me exactly what happened."

Cradled in Sawyer's arms was a very still looking Juliet. Her nose was bleeding and she was pale.

"I don't know doc. She just woke up screaming and in pain."

Jack sat on the edge of the bed with Sawyer's permission. He took Juliet's face into his hands and pushed back her eyelids to reveal the whites of her eyes only.

"Juliet its Jack. Can you hear me?"

Cleaning the blood from under her nose, Jack had yet to elicit a response from her. Her pulse was faint under his fingers. Reaching for the stethoscope Jack placed the earpieces inside his ears. Putting the bell up to her stomach, he sat and listened quietly. Furrowing his eyebrows he listened again double checking his diagnosis. Removing the earpieces from his ears, Jack set the stethoscope down on an old crate used as a side table.

"Everything sounds good and the babies are very active. Can you tell me anything else? Has she been getting enough water? Has she eaten anything she normally doesn't?"

Sawyer's eyes widened as he shifted Juliet a little.

"Jin gave her some sea urchin and some fish earlier."

Jack put everything together. Wiping the last of the blood from under Juliet's nose he saw her head begin to jerk left and right and she started to moan. Sawyer tried shifting Juliet again, but Jack stopped him.

"Don't move her Sawyer. She's having a seizure. Tilt her head back. Keep her airway open and make sure she doesn't swallow her tongue."

Since they had no drugs handy to stop what was happening to Juliet, they would have to wait this out.

"How come this is happening to her doc?"

Sawyer held fear/concern in his voice but was trying to mask it by staying calm.

"I can't be sure unless we take her back to the medical station. My guess is that it could be from the skipped dosage of the serum I was supposed to give her this morning."

Eyes looking almost black in the firelight, Sawyer glared at Jack.

"Get her the injection doc."

Jack felt his shoulders slump. _How could he have been so forgetful?_ He couldn't let negligence become him. Juliet and the twins were his responsibility.

"When the seizure stops, she needs to rest for a while before I can give her the injection. She may also be having a delayed allergic reaction to the sea urchin."

His muscles relaxed as Juliet settled comfortably in Sawyer's arms.

"Do you think it was the sea urchin?"

Leaning over Juliet, Jack looked at her hands and arms.

"A large percentage of people are allergic to shellfish. Sea urchin falls into that category. Her skin isn't irritated and there are no hives. But there other signs of an allergic reaction. Did she say anything about having chest pain?"

Sawyer shook his head and moved a piece of hair from in front of her left eye.

"What? You mean like a heart attack doc?"

Shaking his head no Jack froze when he heard Juliet gasp.

"No. Not like a heart attack Sawyer. I know you've still got quite a large stash of drugs squirreled away in here somewhere. Would you happen to have some Epinephrine?"

Giving a frustrated sigh Sawyer set Juliet back onto their bed and dug under it revealing a lot of things Jack could actually use.

"Here doc, this is what you needed isn't it?"

Jack gave half a smile and took the medication from Sawyer. Stopping just shy of injecting the Epinephrine into Juliet's leg, he heard Kate's voice. It was very far away.

" _Jack wake up…"_

With a start Jack bolted up right and kicked the blankets off him.

"Hey. Shh. It was just a bad dream Jack. You're safe."

The pit in his stomach was churning. The acid starting to rise. Nearly scrambling to his feet he checked on Megan at the foot of the bed. She was wrapped up in her blanket still fast asleep.

"I've got to check on Juliet."

Kate put a hand on his forearm. Tensing, Jack pleaded with his eyes. Something Kate hadn't seen but once before.

"Jack wait until it's a little lighter outside. I don't want you to go stumbling in the dark."

Adamant, Jack stepped out of the tent and navigated by firelight towards Sawyer and Juliet's tent. Sawyer was sitting on a rock just outside their tent with a can of beans over the open fire.

"Something I can help ya with doc?"

Jack glanced at the cooking beans over the open fire and swallowed.

"You're up early. I just came to check on Juliet."

Sawyer stirred the beans and smirked.

"Be my guest doc. She must have been a kick boxer in her last life. She tosses and turns most of the time now. Those two little rascals in her belly are always kicking up a storm when we are trying to sleep."

Jack acknowledged Sawyer and saw him stir the beans over the fire one last time.

"I think your beans are done Sawyer, and that's perfectly normal. Some babies like to move around more at night. They don't know when it's day or night."

Sawyer dug into his beans and chewed silently. Jack entered the shelter, finding Juliet sitting up and looking around confused. She stared straight into Jack's eyes not sure what was going on.

"Jack? What's going on? Where am I?"

Jack played it down and sat on the edge of the bed.

"You're in your tent. Everything's fine. I want you to lie back and relax. How are you feeling?"

Before Juliet could answer someone grabbed her from behind. She clawed at whomever was dragging her out of the tent, but there were strong arms securely wrapped around her. Jack could hear her screaming and then something hard connected with his temple and he saw black.

To Be Continued…


	29. Captured

**Chapter 29: Captured**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/24/15. Date Finished: 7/25/15.

* * *

Kate woke to the smell of old musty wood and seawater. Opening her eyes she found Juliet lying on the floor next to her.

"Juliet? Are you ok?"

Juliet fought Kate at first, her eyes not focusing on any one thing. Kate grabbed for Juliet's hands before she could take a hit to the face.

"Who are you! What do you want with me?"

Kate tried to help Juliet calm down. Trying once more, she was reassuring.

"Juliet it's ok. It's me. It's Kate."

Juliet stopped thrashing and focused on Kate, realization beginning to dawn over her face.

"Why are we locked up in the aquarium?"

Kate looked around and then rose to her feet. Finding the door about 20 feet in front of her, she tugged on the handle.

"They took Megan. We have to get her back and get the hell out of here."

Juliet pushing herself into a sitting position let her head lull into her hands.

"That might be a little difficult Kate since we're under water."

Kate turned back towards Juliet and raised her eyebrows. Fear seized her gut.

"What do you mean we're under water? This is where you held Jack. How come you're in here with me?"

The two women stopped talking when the door behind Kate opened up. Juliet scooted towards the wall, away from the door.

"Ben, why did you lock me in here? Why did you bring _us_ here? Where did you take Kate's baby?"

Ben smirked and Juliet was sure it went all the way up to his eyes.

"Megan is special. Kate and Jack can't provide her with all the things she needs. I brought you here because you belong to me. You're mine. I've told you that before and I'll say it again."

Juliet thought that Ben would've left her alone so that she could be happy with James.

"I'm not _yours_ Ben. Please let us go. Give Kate her daughter back. I have a family now. Why are we so important?"

The smirk stayed on Ben's face. He didn't pull any punches.

"All in good time Juliet. We'll move the two of you to more comfortable quarters soon. You have my word."

Juliet eyed Ben and shook her head. She knew his word didn't carry much weight. Kate's eyes grew wide with surprise when she saw the entity wearing the face of Christian Shephard.

"Are you responsible for taking us? Did you take Megan?"

A smirk made its way across Christian's face.

"Ben's right Kate. Megan is special. Do you have any idea what kind of life we could give her here? Her talents need to be nurtured. Honestly, I just don't think that you and Jack have what it takes to raise her."

Darkening eyes stared back at Christian. Kate wouldn't give up her baby without a fight. She'd die first.

"You don't think Jack and I have what it takes to raise her? I'm sorry did I miss the part where I gave up my rights as a mother? Did you give birth to her? No! You didn't! You didn't spend 72 agonizingly long hours in labor with her only to have her cut out of your belly. Your heart didn't give out leaving you with only a few seconds to see your daughter. You didn't wake up in the jungle a week later not knowing what happened. I have taken care of her since that time. Comforted her after every nightmare, held her when she just wanted her mother's touch, rocked her to sleep, been with her for every meal. So you have no right to tell me I don't have what it takes to raise Megan."

This elicited a dry and almost humorless laugh from Christian.

"Far from it my dear. Jack raised her for a week by himself and even he hasn't done that great of a job. Remember waking up in the jungle a week after Megan was born and you saw me? You had raw rope burns on your wrists? I was the one who dragged you out there. I was the one that tied you up and left you under that tree. But Jacob was the one who dug you out of your shallow grave and gave you the breath of life."

Kate grew worried. Juliet would become weak and die without her serum. She needed two things: the serum and Jack.

"Please just let us go. Where's my daughter? I want to see her. Juliet can't go without her injections and she needs Jack."

Christian let out another dry laugh.

"Jack is a spinal surgeon. He's not an OBGYN. He hasn't delivered a baby in years. He doesn't have what it takes to make sure everything goes smoothly with the delivery."

Kate hurt for Jack. He'd told her how his father had been to him his entire life, and now she understood. She turned when she heard Juliet give a slight grunt as she pushed herself up against the wall behind her.

"I have no problem with Jack's ability to help me out. He's been right about everything so far. There's no other doctor on this island I can trust more than him. He's essentially saved my life more than once. I can at least give him the benefit of the doubt."

Kate felt something electric shock her and she found herself writhing in pain on the floor. She heard a muffled scream and then saw someone put a cloth over Juliet's nose and mouth. Another went over her own and darkness greeted her with open arms.

To Be Continued…


	30. Reunions

**Chapter 30: Reunions**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/25/15. Date Finished: 7/29/15.

* * *

"Come on doc let's go. The coast is clear."

Jack knew that any one of these people could just as well snap his neck, he knew the risks when confronting them. Getting Kate and Megan back was very important. Sawyer was already way ahead of Jack ready to storm down any door to the barracks compound he felt like.

"Sawyer wait! We don't know where they are holding Juliet and Kate, let alone Megan."

But Sawyer had completely ignored Jack's pleas to wait for him. He was insistent on finding Juliet.

* * *

Having been held captive in the house for a week Kate and Juliet were under armed guard 24/7. They weren't allowed to leave the house. Plenty of food was provided for them and the utensils in which to cook with. As of late the only thing Juliet seemed to be able to stomach was oatmeal. Kate had just finished cooking some on the stove when she heard a loud thud come from the back of the house. Worry seizing her gut she hurried to the back of the house and into the bedroom Juliet occupied. Opening the door she found Juliet sprawled on the floor next to the bed, attempting to sit up.

"Juliet, oh my god. What happened?"

Blinking Juliet looked around the room and saw that her water glass was in pieces on the wooden floor beneath her.

"I was trying to reach for my glass of water and I fell off the bed."

Shutting the door when she heard loud footsteps, Kate reached for the gun she had hidden behind the dresser. Sitting down in front of Juliet she aimed for the door. Shaking on the inside she heard voices ascending up the hallway in her direction. It sounded a lot like Jack and Sawyer.

" _I heard something in here doc. On three we break down the door."_

Juliet grabbed for Kate's elbow and squeezed it. Sawyer kicked the door in only to realize that Kate and Juliet were behind it. Giving her best smile despite not having much energy, Juliet gave her thanks.

"About time you boys showed up. I was starting to get worried."

Sawyer smirked and went straight towards her. Kate gave Jack a watery smile when she could see a familiar bundle cradled in his arms. Tucking her handgun into the back of her pants she pulled herself to her feet and walked over to Jack.

"Where did you find her Jack?"

Jack gave a heavy sigh and handed Megan to Kate.

"I found her in the infirmary. She was connected to several machines, and one woman was taking a blood sample from her. I knocked her out before she could give her this."

Procuring a small vial with green liquid in it, Kate's eyes widened. Fear encroached her entire body.

"What is that?"

Jack put a hand up to his forehead and grazed his index and middle finger across it.

"I don't know. The only way to find out what's in this is the run some tests on it back at the medical station."

Kate frantically began looking for anything that might be out of place. Any sign that something was wrong with Megan. Jack continued his thought.

"Other than the cotton ball on her left foot, she doesn't have anything on her."

Smiling through her tears Kate kissed Megan's soft hair and held her close. Jack then turned his attention to Juliet who was in Sawyer's arms.

"Kate how long has she been like this?"

Rocking Megan, Kate knelt down next to Juliet.

"A week Jack. She hasn't been able to keep anything down but plain oatmeal. Whatever drugs they gave her haven't made it out of her system yet. She's been having random muscle spasms. She needs those injections Jack."

Nodding Jack tried to give Juliet a reassuring nod. But concern filled his entire face.

"Ok, let's get you back to the beach. Can you stand?"

Juliet hoisted herself up with the help of Sawyer.

"Easy does it there blondie. You've got precious cargo in there to protect."

A small smile came to Juliet's face as she moved forward, Sawyer's arm under her shoulders for support.  
"I promise I won't break James. You still got my back right?"

Sawyer smiled and then gave a smirk.

"Absolutely gorgeous."

Alarms were now blaring outside the house. The group picked up speed as the exited the house around back. Several voices told them to stop where they were when they got a little past the swing set.

"Don't move! Another inch and I'll shoot them!"

Both Jack and Sawyer tensed and froze where they were at. Kate shut her eyes and held a crying Megan closer to her. Sawyer was the first to turn around, his gun aimed at whom had spoken behind him.

"Uh uh Benny-boy. Juliet's not going anywhere with you."

He was ready to defend and die for Juliet if necessary. If only to protect her. Jack blocked Megan and Kate from Ben.

"I was hoping this wouldn't become necessary but you give me no choice. Grab Juliet and Kate. Take Megan back to the infirmary and start that test I asked for. Then kill Ford and Shephard."

Jack and Sawyer nodded at each other, each pointing their guns at the small group of men in front of them. Two against fifteen weren't good odds. Two of the fifteen were shot in the leg while Juliet and Kate shielded themselves with an overturned picnic table not far from the swing set. Juliet felt sick to her stomach. Blowing out a breath Juliet tried to compose herself. Kate shielded Megan when she heard the crack and splintering of wood. Letting out a cry, Juliet stared at her hands, blood was beginning to soak them. Startled Kate eyed Juliet through Megan's blanket. Eyes round and big with uncertainty and fear she heard Sawyer scream out to Juliet.

"Juliet!?"

A few minutes passed before there was dead silence. Curling fear seized Kate's entire body, but she dared not look out from behind the overturned picnic table. It wasn't until Jack appeared by her side that she looked up. Sawyer held Juliet in his arms as Jack examined the damage caused by the bullet.

"The bullet went all the way through your shoulder. It didn't hit any major arteries and the bleeding isn't too bad. I'll have to sew this up before it gets infected."

Juliet steeled herself and Kate looked away, busying herself with comforting Megan. Biting her lip, Juliet held in a muffled cry and kept her eyes on Sawyer. About halfway through though, Juliet wrapped her right hand around Jack's wrist and blew out a breath. Stopping for the briefest of moments Jack eyed her carefully.

"You're doing fine Juliet. Just four more loops with this thread and you'll be as good as new."  
Shaking her head, she tightened her grip around Jack's wrist and ducked her head.

"It's not the bullet wound. Contractions. Could be from getting shot or from falling down. But my guess would be from getting shot."  
Quickly and gently as he could closing the hole in Juliet's shoulder, he tilted her chin up and looked straight into her eyes.

"It could be Braxton and Hicks, but I want to get you back to the medical station and onto some monitors."

Juliet knew the risks. She knew the risk she was taking being on this island. But her serum had worked. All she needed was the get more of it and she would be as right as rain again. Provided they got to the medical station without any more problems. Her nose flared as her mind went straight to Ben. _This was all his fault._ If he hadn't kidnapped her and brought her back to the barracks she wouldn't be in the condition she was in now, practically in labor with a bullet hole through her left shoulder.

"Once I'm on my feet again, I'll help you analyze what's in the vial."

To Be Continued…


	31. A dead end

**Chapter 31: A dead end**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 7/29/15. Date Finished: 8/2/15.

* * *

Hunched over a microscope Juliet squinted her eyes. Jack sighed and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Take a break Juliet. Let me see what I can find."

Reluctantly, Juliet moved her stool over so that Jack could take her place. Putting her bare and swollen feet up on another stool next to her she sighed content with taking the pressure off them. A dizzy spell suddenly seized her and she blacked out. Milliseconds too slow, Jack was unable to prevent Juliet from landing on her side. Wincing, Jack scrambled to his feet and knelt down next to Juliet. Pushing some hair out of her eyes he looked at her carefully. Not moving her still form, he examined her head for any bumps. Worry creased his forehead in great and deep crevices.

"Come on Juliet."

Reaching for the middle drawer under the microscope, Jack pulled out a blood pressure cuff. Wrapping it around her right arm he watched the needle go up as he squeezed the mechanism at the bottom. Letting the air out he frowned at the numbers the needle was indicating.

"90/60. Juliet what is going on?"

He said it more to himself than to an unconscious Juliet. She'd been drinking plenty of water, but he hadn't seen her eat anything since breakfast. She could get very caught up in her work, which was dangerous now more than before. Removing the cuff from around her arm, he saw Juliet's eyes flutter and open slowly. He put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from sitting up. Something soft was under her head.

"Jack, what's going on?"

Keeping her calm, Jack explained what happened to a clearly confused Juliet.

"You lost consciousness. You were out for 15 minutes. You need to eat something Juliet. Your blood pressure is 90/60. Those aren't good numbers. Babies are doing just fine. There's no trauma from the fall, no bleeding and no obstructions. Where's Sawyer? He needs to know what happened."

Juliet's face grew red as she managed to get into a comfortable sitting position.

"James went to get me some fish and sea urchin from Jin. He should be back in about 5 minutes."

Jack helped Juliet lean against the counter and handed her some water.

"When I say take it easy Juliet I didn't mean sitting on the stool in front of a microscope and working. That's not taking it easy. Your retaining a lot of water. Your feet are still very swollen. Here put them up on this pile of blankets. I don't want you moving around until you get something into your stomach."

Juliet crossed her arms in protest.

"Ok. But I'll need to use the bathroom soon."

Arms still crossed she opened her mouth but it was Jack who piped up.

"I can help you solve that problem Juliet if you want. It's up to you."

Eyes widening in embarrassment Juliet shook her head.

"Jack we had a deal. Hell no. The deal was the catheter goes in when I go into labor. That was the deal. Nothing before that."

Jack put up his hands in mock surrender and put the catheter back into a drawer off to the side of the microscope station. Relaxing and leaning against the cabinet behind her she watched as Sawyer entered the room, an old tray from the plane with a cooked fish and some sea urchin. Leaning down and setting the tray on her lap, Sawyer pushed a strand of hair away from her face. It'd fallen out of her messy bun on her head.

"What are you doing down here blondie? I thought you were supposed to be helping the doc find out what that green stuff is in that tube."

A small smile coming to her lips Juliet looked down at the tray in front of her.

"I passed out but I'm fine now. I just need to eat something."

Reaching for a piece of sea urchin Juliet attempted to put it into her mouth when Jack put a hand over her right one.

"Don't eat that. Your throat is going to swell if you do, making it difficult to breathe. Your allergic to sea urchin."

Staring at the orange piece of sea life between her fingers she scrutinized it. Then quizzically looking up at Jack, Juliet held up the gooey piece of sea urchin.

"How do you know that Jack?"

Trying not to shift uncomfortably on the floor beside Juliet, Jack pointed to the piece of food in her hand.

"From a nightmare I had about a week ago. Right before you were dragged off into the jungle and I was hit in the head with the butt of a rifle."

Juliet put the piece of sea urchin back on the tray. Taking the tray away, Jack set it on the countertop. Pulling Juliet to her feet she steadied herself with his left forearm.

"I thought you said you didn't want me to move Jack."

Getting her over to the sink he answered.

"This is a life threatening situation."

Once her hands were clean, Juliet settled herself back into her spot on the floor. Sawyer taking the tray with him spoke.

"I'll get you some boar blondie. Stay put."

Looking up at Jack, she caught a small pack of saltines he tossed at her.

"They'll settle your stomach until Sawyer gets back with the boar."

Munching on a saltine Juliet stared hard at the microscope. She'd wondered if Jack had found anything.

"So what's in it? The green substance that Ben was going to give Megan?"

Shaking his head, Jack lowered himself onto a stool and scooted himself next to Juliet.

"This is a dead end Juliet. There is nothing in it that I recognize. He could be getting help from someone. Like maybe an outside source? You once told me he leaves the island when he feels like it. Do you know where he goes?"

Juliet shook her head and took another saltine from the bag, popping it into her mouth. Swallowing, she answered.

"I don't know where he goes. But I would give anything just to go home again. If I'm lucky, maybe I can have these two in a _real_ hospital instead of the medical station."

Jack understood her concerns. But he knew that he too had to be practical. They'd been stuck on this island for 5 years and no one had come. Settling down was all he could do and keep busy.

* * *

"I heard Juliet fainted earlier. Is she ok?"

Kate sat on the edge of the bed trying to get Megan to sleep. Jack smiled at Megan and ran a hand over her tiny head of hair.

"She's ok for now. I'll have to keep a closer eye on her though. What did Ben give her anyways?"

Kate shuddered and watched Megan as she nodded off into a peaceful slumber.

"That thing that's your 'father' says it was a couple of horse tranquilizers. It doesn't make any sense since they didn't give me one. They only gave me a sedative."

This worried Jack more now that her and Juliet were back. But finding out the Black Smoke monster that was masquerading as his father was in on the whole conspiracy of bringing out some raw talents Megan didn't even know she would be capable of until she was older? That was something else entirely. Kate had filled him in on everything his 'father' told her. He didn't believe anything he said though. It was just another smoke screen of deception.

"Why would they give you a sedative and Juliet the horse tranquilizers?"

Kate averted her eyes towards the rolling surf outside.

"I don't know Jack, but we both know that Juliet can't go through something like this again. She couldn't keep anything down. I had to help her to the bathroom because she was so weak. She wouldn't have lasted another week if you hadn't come."

This made Jack angry. Ben and the Smoke Monster had taken Kate and Megan too. Not just Juliet. He knew how Ben's mind worked and he had a horrible hunch cross his mind.

"That thing that says he's my 'father' will be back. Him and Ben and I'm sure they'll come with lots of reinforcements this time. Whatever that green substance was in that vial, they were not only going to give it to Megan, they are probably waiting until Juliet gives birth and give it to the twins too. We need to be ready for them."

Giving a weary smile, Kate put Megan back into the cradle.

"That's a good idea Jack. But we don't exactly have enough rifles and guns to arm everyone. Desmond blew the hatch remember? We don't even know if he made it back to the mainland to bring back help. That was two years ago now."

Jack hadn't thought about Desmond in a while. He hoped in the back of his mind that he made it back to the mainland. But it would be difficult to find the island again. _Not without the right coordinates._ That was what Desmond said.

"I'm sure he's working day and night to find a way to get help back here. We just have to be patient."

Kate nodded solemnly. She knew what was waiting for her when she returned to the mainland.

"Right now the people that were chasing me think I'm dead. Maybe it's best they think that. I want to start fresh when we go back. We have a family now Jack. We have Megan to think about, what's best for her. With time Gracie and Cody. I don't want them to grow up without a mother."

Jack pulled her into his arms and began kissing the side of her neck.

"Whatever happens when we get back, I'm with you. I won't let anything happen to you. My family may be able to help you. My mother knows a really good lawyer. When we get back, let me speak to her."

Kate hoped that she could finally live in peace without running when she got back. She had her family now, and that was what mattered most.

To Be Continued…


	32. Unprepared

**Chapter 32: Unprepared**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 8/2/15. Date Finished: 8/7/15.

* * *

"Juliet is giving birth in four days. I want everything ready by then. If Ford resists kill him. Take Jack. He'll be useful in doing our research. But we have convince him that he's doing 'good'."

Ben's malicious smile rose to his eyes and resembled something twisted and evil. Nodding Ben knew exactly what he was supposed to do.

"We'll be ready to ambush them sir."

The Black Smoke monster gave a grin only the evilest of things could give.

"Got you a mango blondie. Here. Take a load off and put your feet up."

Sighing Juliet settled her feet up on a pile of old cushions from the plane.

"You know James this really isn't necessary…"

Her hand shook as she took a bite of her mango. She'd woken that morning to a stiff back and lower back pain. She thought nothing of it as it had come and gone. _Four days is four days until these little one's come out._ Taking another bite she looked up to find Jack staring at her with a concerned expression crossing his face.

"You're looking a little pale Juliet. You feeling ok?"

Shifting uncomfortably Juliet knew she couldn't fool Jack. She was exhibiting the same body language Kate had right before Megan was born.

"My back has been bothering me all day. But come to think of it, it's getting a little harder to ignore. I've probably been in labor most of the day. You would think I'd recognize the difference between gas pains, a backache and contractions. It's so much different when you are on the receiving end of it and not someone else. I think this is it."

Sawyer's eyes grew wide with nervousness as he gently pulled her to her feet. Putting his left arm under her shoulders, he guided her towards the tree line. Once in the jungle, Jack stayed close to Juliet, acting as a kind of spotter in case she tripped on a rock, tree root or fallen tree.

"Take your time Juliet. There's no rush."

Juliet glared at Jack as she stopped dead in her tracks, grabbing for a low tree branch in her path. Jack didn't take offense, he took everything in stride.

"Oh god I feel like someone's socking me in the stomach with a sledgehammer!"

Jack stayed close but managed to keep a little distance away from Juliet. He put his hands up to reassure her.

"Take a breath and blow through the pain. Don't go against it. It'll only make it worse."

Juliet now understood the women she helped on this island. She was always sympathetic towards them, but she couldn't reciprocate the pain that they felt. She knew that now and all she wanted was the two of these babies out of her. Contraction subsiding, she tested the ground below her. When she was sure she could walk, she moved forward with Sawyer's help.

"How much farther to the medical station?"

A sympathetic sort of smile danced across Jack's lips as he turned towards Juliet.

"Just beyond those palm trees there."

Taking another breath Juliet pushed forward, letting go of Sawyer's hand and pushed his helping hands away.

"I am not a child James, I can walk by myself."

About to protest Sawyer opened his mouth to say something, but Jack shook his head no at him.

"Don't argue with her Sawyer. That's the last thing she needs right now. Just agree with her."

Sawyer however didn't agree with Juliet. But she was ready to use every four letter word in the book just to keep him quiet. He saw her sigh in relief when they reached the foliage covering the hatch doors to the medical station.

"Ice chips would be nice right about now."

Jack sighed, that was one thing he couldn't provide to help ease Juliet's dehydration.

"The saline will have to do. No ice on this island unfortunately."

Juliet looked away and sighed. Her eyes roamed the monitors that she was attached to. Shifting she tried to make herself comfortable.

"I don't think ice would make much of a difference."

Jack put a hand on Juliet's shoulder.

"I think it would. You get some rest. You're going to need all your strength for these two."

No sooner had those words come out of Jack's mouth did another contraction bite through Juliet. Reaching for both of Sawyer's hands she held them tight. Sawyer reciprocated and held on. He felt slightly out of place. He swallowed when she let out a scream. Her nose flaring she yelled through the pain.

"Ah! Son of a bitch! Get me that epidural Jack! Right now!"

A hand on her shoulder, Jack shook his head and turned his attention towards the monitors. Looking each one of them over carefully he gave a sigh of satisfaction.

"Listen to me Juliet. I need you to relax and breathe through the pain. In through your nose and out through your mouth. Once the contraction comes back down, I'll check to see if you're at six centimeters. If you are, then I'll give you the epidural."

Juliet was done playing games though. She wanted results and she wanted the pain to disappear. Blowing through the last of the pain she closed her eyes and threw her left arm over her face. When she was finally able to breathe again, she uncovered her face. Sawyer was there wiping the sweat away.

"Nothing to it blondie. You're doing great."

She fiddled with the tape on her hand covering the iv.

"Don't play with that Juliet. When you're nervous you pick at things."

Folding her hands over her stomach Juliet stared up at the ceiling.

"I don't expect you to understand what I'm going through Jack. Yes I know medically speaking you know, but you don't really _know."_

Jack smirked and looked directly at her. Juliet could tell he was faltering with his bed side manner.

"The best thing for you is stay calm. Two more centimeters to go before I can give you that epidural."

Giving a frustrated sigh Juliet restrained herself from rolling her eyes.

"Only four in 22 hours? You've got to be kidding me."

Jack could see Juliet was scared, but she used frustration to skirt around it.

"I know your frustrated Juliet, but this is going to take some time. They are both still pretty high up there. First time births often take the most time. Right now, your only about 20 percent effaced. You've got a ways to go. Get some rest."

He turned when he heard the familiar sound of Kate's heavy footsteps enter the room.

"Hey, where's the baby?"

Kate smiled and approached Juliet after she washed her hands.

"Relax Jack. Megan's with Claire and Charlie. Besides I want to help. She did so much for us, helping me, and Megan, I think I should repay that kindness and help her out."

Juliet waved her hand at Kate and gave a small smile.

"Kate that's not necessary. I was only doing my job. That was to make sure you and Megan survived. Too many firemen and enough hoses already. But I appreciate your kindness."

Kate felt out of place at the moment, and clearly she was. Nodding in agreement she stepped out of Jack's way. Before she left the room she turned back to Juliet with a smile.

"I bet the first one out will be Cara. Then Andrew."

Sawyer scoffed at Kate's remark. He was still betting on his son to come first. Kate had completely retreated from the room and Juliet sighed shutting her eyes. She somehow felt exhausted even though she hadn't reached the end of her labor yet. She knew she was still in the early stages of it. Drifting in and out of a light slumber, she could feel a damp cloth on her forehead. When her eyes opened again she let them wander to the iv stand next to where she was lying. Jack was replacing the empty saline bag with a new one.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. This should help keep you hydrated for a little while. How are you feeling?"

Licking her parched lips Juliet took in a breath.

"Tired. Can't we speed this up? I want to walk around. Is that ok?"

Jack took a moment to consider Juliet's request. Nodding he watched the monitors for a few seconds.

"Sure. I don't see why not. I'll have to take the catheter out. Take a breath in and relax."

Juliet blew out a breath through her teeth and rolled over onto her side.

"You would think the supply companies that make these would put a warning label on the packaging and ones that don't hurt either."

Jack cast an apologetic gaze at Juliet.

"Sorry. Remind me to give you something to numb your bladder again before I put another catheter in. Need a hand up?"

Juliet accepted Jack and Sawyer's hands and planted her feet on the floor.

"Thanks. I need to stretch my legs anyways."

Jack kept a hand on her shoulder to steady her in case she fell.

"Do you feel nauseous?"

Swallowing Juliet waited for a minute and then shook her head.

"No."

Discarding the used catheter into the bio-hazard bin just behind him Jack turned when he heard a squishing sound by the door.

"Jack they're coming!"

Jack helped a struggling Kate who had an arrow in her leg just above her right knee. Megan was screaming behind the old airline blanket.

"That _thing_ that calls himself my _father?_ Where did you see him?"

Kate took a seat on a nearby stool and winced.

"He chased me from the beach. I took Megan and ran. Charlie, Claire and Aaron were right behind me. We have to find them."

Sympathetic eyes roved over Kate and an understanding nod came from Jack.

"You do remember that Juliet is in labor don't you? I can't leave her."

Kate sat and tried to stay still as Jack cleaned around the end of the arrow. She could see he was holding his breath. He soon let it out as he found that this injury wasn't life-threatening.

"Looks like the arrow didn't hit any major arteries. I'm going to clean the wound, cut out the arrow and dress it. Now is she hurt?"

Jack gestured towards Megan who was still screaming.

"I don't know. I tried to shield her when the arrow came towards me. I fell."

Pulling the blanket back Jack looked at the screaming face of his daughter. Keeping her calm would prove difficult until he found any injuries or if she was just frightened.

"Hey baby girl. Daddy is going to check you out ok?"

It broke his heart every time he heard Megan cry. Especially when she was scared. He felt his muscles relax as he found everything in order. Relaxing even more when she reacted with normal reflexes Jack smiled and rubbed Megan's tiny stomach.

"Aside from being scared, the only thing she came out of this with is a cut scrape on her left temple and a cut on her right hand. Nothing a little peroxide can't fix."

Juliet locked eyes with Kate and then they wandered to the giant vault door behind her.

"James shut the door. Ben can't get in from the outside. This is the same kind of door used inside a bank vault. Virtually indestructible. Bullets can't get through it. Not even dynamite. Shut it and lock it."

Sawyer nodded and made his way over towards the door. It took all of his strength to shut the door. Hearing the lock click into place he went back to Juliet.

"You got it blondie. Now what?"

Fear glossed over her face as she gripped the countertop.

"Now we hope that it holds. I will not let them take Cara and Andrew. I will give my life for them."

This would take more time. Jack knew they couldn't stay in there forever, but it was the safest place at the moment.

To Be Continued…


	33. Sealed in

**Chapter 33: Sealed in**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie and Cody.

Date Started: 8/8/15. Date Finished: 8/11/15.

* * *

"Jack I swear if you tell me to keep pushing one more time…"

Fear was gripping Juliet and even though the pain was less intense, it was still present. She'd done exactly as Jack had instructed. For the last 8 hours. Her energy had been waning since that time. She just wanted whomever was first to come out. Whether it be Andrew or Cara she didn't care anymore. She only wanted them out of her.

"Keep going Juliet. I know you're tired, but you're doing just fine. Give me another push."

Annoyance crept over her tired face. Nodding Juliet ducked her head and pressed her chin against her chest. Keeping his eyes on Juliet Jack projected his voice toward Kate who had just put Megan down in the crib in the corner of the room. She could sleep through anything.

"Kate come here. I want you to hold Juliet's leg as far back as you can get it towards her chest."

Fixing the blankets over Megan she froze for a split second and turned to Jack wide eyed.

"Wait. You want me to do what now?"

Keeping his focus on Juliet he kept his frustration toned down and nodded towards Kate.

"Just follow exactly what Sawyer's doing. Nothing to it. You said you wanted to help. Here's your chance Kate."

Swallowing her deep-seated fear Kate stepped forward and copied exactly what Sawyer was doing.

"Hey Juliet. I know you're feeling frustrated and very scared right now, but do you remember what you told me the night I gave birth to Megan? Remember how scared I was? You did so much for Megan and I. Those first few months you were such a great help to me. Without those injections of your serum, I wouldn't be here and neither would Megan. You are doing so well. Cara and Andrew are going to be healthy and beautiful babies."

Letting out a groan Juliet kept going. Maybe she was getting closer. Jack's head popped up from behind the sheet and a grin appeared.

"I can see the head Juliet. One more push and the head will be out. Come on. Almost there. Ok the hard part's over now."

Giving a cry rather than a scream Juliet used her strength to push her first baby out. Jack let out a small laugh and his hands emerged from between her knees with a baby in tow.

"Congratulations Juliet, from the looks of it you have a healthy little girl. Judging by her weight she has to be at least 9 pounds. Sawyer would you like to do the honors?"

Nervously stepping forward Sawyer took the scissors from Jack and cut the cord. He smiled. He was already in love with his daughter. Sawyer thought he could see a hint of a smirk at the left corner of her lip. Cara definitely had his nose, but the rest was all Juliet. Kissing Juliet's sweaty forehead he watched as Cara's tiny hands wiggled against her mother's skin.

"She's probably got her mama's eyes, but she already has daddy's smirk."

Kate sat in awe. She remembered when Jack put Megan in her arms for the first time. There was no word to describe what she'd been feeling at the time. But now she had it pegged down to pure euphoria. Inwardly she laughed. She'd never seen the softer side to Sawyer before. Especially around children. Now that he had a family of his own, he'd have to learn patience and quickly. Sawyer chanced a peek behind the sheet covering Juliet and his face immediately paled. Stealing a glance at Sawyer and seeing his reaction Jack gave him a smirk.

"Maybe its best if you stayed behind the sheet Sawyer. There's a lot of stuff going on, on this side of the sheet right now."

Sawyer brushed Jack's comment off with one of his own.

"I was just curious doc. Is Andy coming yet?"

Shaking his head Jack continued what he was doing.

"Not for a while Sawyer. Juliet's back down to six centimeters."

Sighing Juliet watched as Cara squinted at her. She knew the infant wouldn't be able to see clearly for some time. Shifting uncomfortably Juliet stared at Jack. He'd just removed the last of the afterbirth.

"You didn't feel that did you?"

Shaking her head Juliet turned her attention back to Cara who was cooing happily.

"No. I just feel the pressure. It doesn't hurt."

Cara let out an angry cry.

"Here let me warm her up and give her a bath. I promise I'll give her right back."

Juliet nodded through her tears. _One down. One to go._ As Jack took Cara from Juliet's arms, she gave a light kiss to the girl's forehead. Watching as Jack gave her daughter a bath, Juliet kept smiling. Cara kept screaming as Jack ran warm water over her. She could hear Jack speaking to her over her wailing, trying to keep her calm. But it didn't seem to be working.

"It's ok Cara. I know the water may seem like its cold, compared to the place you just came from. But you'll get used to it. There we go. All clean. Let's get you into a blanket and back to your mom."

Before making his way back to Juliet, Jack made a stop by the scale and weighed Cara.

"She's 9 pounds and 4 ounces. Healthy size for a girl."

Juliet let more tears flow. She was happy, but at the same time sad. Her mind wandered to the other baby still inside of her slowly making his way into the world.

"I hoped I would've been off this damned island by now. Why am I still here?"

Jack wished he could answer that question for her. In the back of his mind he hoped that Desmond would be back with help soon. Preferably before his other two children came about.

"Desmond promised he'd be back for us. But it might take a long time. Now I want you to relax and take a rest before your next contraction. You should try to nurse Cara. She's probably getting hungry by now."

The squirming baby in Juliet's arms let out a cry of discontent. This was going to be another long night.

To Be Continued…


	34. A struggle for life

**Chapter 34: A struggle for life**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 8/11/15. Date Finished: 8/12/15.

* * *

"Something's wrong! Get him out!"

Kate paled next to Juliet but swallowed and tried to offer her words of encouragement.

"Everything's going to be fine. Andy is going to come out safe and healthy. Jack has everything under control."

Juliet let another cry out and pleaded to Kate with her eyes. Kate was on the verge of tears herself. Sawyer would never forgive Jack if anything happened to his son. Looking towards Jack all Kate could see was his shoulders and they were slightly slumped.

"What I wouldn't give for a vacuum right about now."

Confused wide eyes stared back at Jack for a brief moment.

"Why can't you get him out?"

Jack knew that she was frightened of what was happening. But he had to keep her calm.

"Shh Juliet. I've got everything under control. Just try and relax ok?"

Biting her lip Juliet took a breath and looked up at the ceiling. Sawyer put in his two cents worth to try and get her to focus on him.

"Everything's going to be fine blondie. The docs got things under control. Our boy is going to be here soon."

A blood-curdling scream issued from Juliet's throat.

"Please! Just get him out!"

Doing his best Jack shook his head. But he knew that wasn't good enough. He had to find a way to get Andrew out safely without injuring him.

"Juliet everything is going to be fine. I'll have Andy out in a few minutes. But I need you to stay still. You'll feel some tugging for a little bit. Don't push."

Becoming confused Juliet gave a hard stare to Jack.

"Ok let me get this straight: first off with Cara you tell me to keeping pushing. Now you tell me not to push? I can't go against what my body is telling me Jack."

Becoming quiet she bit her lip once more and looked to Kate, who was frazzled but was trying to be brave. Sawyer was worried, Jack could see worry lines starting to crease on his forehead from the corner of his eye. But he had to concentrate on getting this little boy safely out of his mother.

"What's going on doc? Why did you tell Juliet to stop pushing?"

Gritting his teeth he snapped his eyes up momentarily to meet Sawyers.

"I need everybody to just be quiet right now. I need to concentrate. Your son is stuck. I'm doing my best to get him free of whatever he's stuck on. This is going to take a bit longer."

Kate stared blankly at Jack for a few seconds trying to analyze his attitude. Then she remembered the day Megan was born. He was on edge too. Frustrated and angry. But this time it was only frustration. He was so used to having a team of other doctors with him to help out it felt draining. Sawyer blew his top. Dark stormy eyes waged war on a violent sea.

"So help me Jack if anything happens to my boy…"

Jack knew what the rest of his sentence was. It wasn't the first time Sawyer had threatened him. He'd been threatened by him more than once. Intervening Juliet piped up despite her exhausted state.

"Jack is Andy breech? Did you try an external cephalic version?"

Jack held his ground and nodded trying to keep everything together.

"Already did it. His ankle is tangled in the umbilical cord. I can fix it and get him out. You have my word. Just relax. Everything is under control."

Closing her eyes she winced. Taking a breath she knew she could trust Jack with her life. His word meant a lot to Juliet. He always kept the promises he could make. She could feel the pressure becoming less intense and more subtle. _Was he out?_ Gasping she felt a weight leave her and she looked towards Jack.

"Do you have him? Is he out?"

Jack smiled and nodded clearing the boy's nose and mouth. Holding her breath Juliet shut her eyes again as she heard him belt out his first cry.

"Yes he's out. You have a handsome boy. I'd say 8 pounds. You did well Juliet. You should be proud of yourself. I know I am."

Sawyer's eyes lit up as Jack gave Andy to Juliet.

"Now that's a strong boy."

Jack tried to hide a smile but failed to do so as Sawyer caught him in the act.

"I saw that smile doc. Your wishing for a boy yourself."

Jack let out a dry laugh. He knew it would be several years before he had his son Cody around. It wasn't clear however if he would be born here on the island or if he would be born in a hospital on the mainland.

"It'll be at least seven years before I see my own son. By then I hope we're home."

Jack yearned to be home too. A sudden shaking of the room began to make it quiver and then an explosion rocked it. Jack was thrown to the floor. Kate could only hear muffled sounds. Her eyes at first could only make out blurry figures entering the room from a large hole in the wall. She tried to fight off the two that lifted her up from the floor. She could make out Jack's figure going for the crib and reaching for Megan. But he was hit in the back of the head with a heavy looking metal object she couldn't make out. She heard a gunshot in Sawyer's direction and then something knocked her completely out.

To Be Continued…


	35. Held prisoner

**Chapter 35: Held prisoner**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 8/13/15. Date Finished: 8/14/15.

* * *

She woke to find herself handcuffed to the bedframe. Jack was sprawled out on the floor halfway beneath the bed. Tugging on the cuffs attached to the bedframe Kate knew she had to get to Jack.

"Jack? Can you hear me?"

Jack was out cold. Spotting a dish on the side table next to the bed, she saw needle, thread and a bunch of buttons in it. _What were the odds of finding a needle to pick the lock of these handcuffs?_ Grabbing for it, Kate stuck the needle into the key hole and dug around until she heard a click. Rubbing her wrist once it was free she clumsily made her way to her feet. Padding towards Jack Kate leaned over him placing a warm hand up against his cheek.

"Jack come on. Wake up. It's Kate."

Kate swung her head out of the way to avoid Jack's thrashing left hand. His eyes adjusting to the room around him, he stared up at Kate.

"Where?"

Putting a hand to his forehead Kate ran it over the thin sheen of sweat.

"We're at the Dharma barracks. What did they give you?"

Half cradling him in her arms and half propping him up against the nightstand Kate looked into his eyes and tried to see his reaction.

"Horse tranquilizer. You ok? Let me see your wrist."

Kate let Jack examine her wrist and winced as he probed it with his fingers.

"A little peroxide or some aloe it'll be ok. I have a feeling they are keeping her in the infirmary. We might have to fight tooth and nail to get out of this house."

* * *

Juliet woke in a bed and saw Ben sitting in a chair across from her next to the bed. Struggling to sit upright she opted to stay lying down.

"Ben what do you want with me? Where are my kids?"

Trying again, she pushed herself from the bed. She was wearing a set of white pants and a shirt. But they weren't hers. Refusing Ben's offer for help she braced the wall molding in the hallway for support. Each move she made was agony, but it was a price to pay if she was ever going to see her children again. Not bothering to put shoes on, she opened up the front door to the house, which she noticed was Ben's. Stepping out she found two armed guards out front. Ben pushed his way to the front and parted the guards.

"Let her pass gentlemen. I'm taking her to see her children."

The two burly men at the door stepped aside and let Juliet pass. She didn't give so much as an acknowledgement to either one of her former fellow neighbors as she passed. The pain grew worse as she made the long trek to the infirmary. A door to the right of her opened up, and out of the house came Jack. Juliet stopped and gave him some semblance of a smile but it was more of a grimace. Making his way towards her he spoke.

"Juliet you're bleeding."

Nodding she looked down by her feet then wearily made eye contact with Jack.

"I know. My sutures tore. No one warned me it would ever be this painful walking after giving birth."

Jack reached out to steady Juliet and tried to sympathize with her.

"When we get to the infirmary I'll put screens up for some privacy. You'll need 8 sutures to fix the tear."

Juliet gawked at Jack for a millisecond. _He was kidding right?_

"Eight? Was Andrew's head really that big? Might as well have been a 12 pound bowling ball. That's why he couldn't fit?"

Nodding his head Jack kept his voice low. He didn't want Ben hearing their conversation.

"Yes. What I don't understand and can't quite figure out is how his ankle got tangled in the umbilical cord. Don't worry. I'll give you some anesthetic before I start."

Wincing Juliet pushed forward with Jack's help. Entering the infirmary her eyes lit up as she saw Andrew and Cara each in a separate plastic basinet but next to each other. Directing Juliet to a nearby bed, he pushed the clear plastic basinets on either side of the bed. Setting up screens around the bed, he heard Ben's voice behind them.

"Is there anything else you need Jack?"

Jack didn't like how deceptively calm Ben always was.

"Actually yeah there is. Could you please leave?"

Hearing footsteps leave the infirmary Jack double checked to make sure Ben had really gone. Sighing in relief he found there were only a couple of other people in the infirmary. The screens were the only things shielding them.

"You should get some rest. I'll come and check on you in a little while. No sudden movements got it?"

Juliet nodded but was too sleepy to answer. She had just fed both Cara and Andrew and they were fast asleep. She had to take advantage of that from now on. Jack kept the screens up as he stepped out from behind it. He felt he should give Juliet some privacy. He turned when he heard a familiar whimper come from the far side of the room. Hidden away behind another set of screens Jack found Megan in another plastic basinet. His eyes roved over the machines she was connected to. One measured her heart rate, blood pressure and a few other things he was sure weren't relevant to her state of health. But what threw him off was the fact that she was attached to an iv line filled with the strange green substance him and Juliet tried to analyze just four months earlier. As he was about to remove the iv line from her arm a gun clicked behind him.

"You remove that and Kate dies."

Shutting his eyes and taking a breath, Jack turned around and held his hands up in a submissive fashion. Facing Ben his nose flared with anger.

"Why are you doing this Ben? Why is my daughter special to you? To my 'father'? Why don't you put the gun down so we can talk huh?"

Kate wanted to reach for Megan but she knew better than to do such a thing with a gun pointed to her head.

"Please let me go Ben. I just want to see my baby."

Ben held onto Kate's arm tighter. Megan's whining was turning into a cry. Kate wanted to soothe her crying, but most of all take whatever was in her arm out. Jack had no idea what was even in the substance flowing into their daughter's arm and into her veins and he knew that there might be some side effects.

"You don't get to make that choice for your daughter Kate Austen. She was brought here for a greater purpose."

Megan's crying became frantic and a machine began to beep. Jack was trying to counter-propose Ben.

"Keep your voice down Ben. Please put the gun down. I need to check on Megan. Tell me exactly what's in that substance you're giving her."

Ben's twisted smile curled and it made both parent's sick to their stomach.

"I'll tell you what I'll let you examine your daughter."

Jack had a suspicious feeling growing in the pit of his stomach. He felt dizzy but forced himself to be calm. His eyes wandered to a light box with a set of x-rays. They were too small to be an adult's. Creasing his brow he looked them over and frowned. Trying to keep from exploding with anger he turned to Ben looking as if his eyes were on fire.

"How long has she had this?"

Jack kept his eyes on Ben but pointed in the direction of the light box. Ben shrugged his shoulders almost indifferent to the situation.

"How should I know? I'm not a doctor Jack. You are."

It wasn't enough for Jack though. Ben had caused too much suffering for his family. Especially over the last 3 years alone.

"This island is supposed to make people better! Not make them sick."

Everything was falling apart again. He would make Megan better. On the inside he felt his heart break and his soul began to weep.

To Be Continued…


	36. A wrench in the plan

**Chapter 36: A wrench in the plan**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 8/15/15. Date Finished: 8/20/15.

* * *

"What is it Jack? What does that white spot on her lung mean?"

Staring at the x-ray Jack knew he had to break this to Kate as gently as possible. He tried removing himself from the situation but it wasn't easy.

"It means that she has a tumor. I won't know if it's malignant or not until I get a good look at it."

Ben had surprisingly left the couple alone. Kate sat on a stool, pale and staring at the sleeping baby in the plastic basinet.

"Jack this is too much. She's barely a year old. In such a short span of time she's been through things no child should have to deal with."

It was almost as if the island were playing a deadly card game and Jack and Kate were bearing the brunt of it with a series of bad hands. Everything was frozen in time and Kate felt her hands begin to shake.

"Can you take that iv out of her arm with that green stuff? Please?"

Jack nodded and proceeded to gently remove the iv with the unknown substance flowing into his daughter's veins.

"I will do my best to figure out what this substance is. You have my word that I will get that tumor out of her lung."

Kate scooped Megan up and kissed her head. Megan whined and snuggled closer to her mother.

"It's ok baby. Mommy's here. Daddy will get us off this island and you'll get better."

Her voice croaked a little on her last statement. Too many things were happening at once right now. She'd ask for Juliet's help too, but she knew that Juliet had her hands full with her own children. Jack could handle the surgery.

"This island is threatening to destroy us Kate. I don't know how or why, but it's trying. We have to be strong against it. I can fix this."

Kate had been strong through all that had happened to Megan her entire first year. Rocking a fussy Megan, Kate looked into Jack's hazel eyes searching for some sort of confirmation.

"I know you can do this Jack, but can you ask for Juliet's opinion too?"

Running a hand over his stubble Jack nodded seriously and put a hand on Megan's back. He was still in doctor-mode.

"I'll ask her once she's had a little more rest. She hasn't had a whole lot of it in the last 16 hours."

"Ok. There we go sweetie."

Jack lent a helping hand when he saw Juliet let out a pained breath.

"Here, I've got him. Just lie back."

Juliet gave him a look of thanks before her eyes landed on the light box against the wall. A frown formed across her lips and worry began to grow inside her.

"Whose x-rays are those Jack?"

Shaking his head his own frown deepened.

"They belong to Megan. Tell me, what do you see in her right lung?"

Her eyes landed on the radiopaque object on the x-ray.

"A tumor, and the size of a grape from the looks of it. How old are these x-rays?"

Looking away Jack thought on Juliet's statement and last question. He turned over her words in his mind before he answered.

"Ben said a couple of days. But you know how Ben is. He lies and is very unreliable. Of course who the hell knows if this is real or not? For all I know he could just be messing with my head. Megan could be completely healthy."

A voice came from behind Jack and he turned to see the one person he dreaded each and every day.

"Oh but I'm not lying Jack. You've seen the proof for yourself. The only way to save your daughter is to take _that_ out."

Ben pointed to the x-ray and snapped his fingers. Jack became irritated.

"Ok. I've heard enough. You can leave now. I've got things under control. Leave Juliet alone. She's already stated she doesn't want you anywhere near her."

Cara started to cry in the basinet over to the right of the bed. Juliet sighed, she knew she was going to need some help with these two.

"I fed her first. She probably needs to be changed. Jack, what if James is dead?"

Her eyes watered at the thought. But then she wiped the lone tear that came down her right cheek.

"I'm sure Sawyer is fine. More than fine he's probably already treated his gunshot wound and is on his way here right now."

A laugh escaped Juliet's mouth. Jack liked it when she was in a lighter mood. He couldn't peg her attitude when he first met her. Cold perhaps? Guarded? She was a much different person now compared to only 3 years ago.

"Yeah, you're probably right. If I know James, he'll come in guns blazing."

Jack had changed Cara while the two of them talked. He was afraid of what was happening to Megan. _The island was supposed to cure not cause diseases and other harmful anomalies._

"I'm hoping we caught this early enough."

Juliet knew that Jack would risk everything to keep his family alive. He wanted to get home just as bad as she did.

"There's only one way to find out Jack. You know there are times I wished I'd never come to this place. This island nearly ruined my life. I've never seen my nephew. Julian. Not in person anyways. I saw him on a video feed about 5 years ago. He's 7 now. He must be so big. Desmond had better bring help back soon. I'm not giving birth to another child on this island. I'd help you Jack, but I'm kind of disposed of at the moment, and I'm not a surgeon. I should thank whatever higher powers there are for Cara and Andrew and their good health."

* * *

"There we go Megan. Daddy got that nasty thing out of your lung."

Megan cradled in his arms, he smiled. He'd gotten the tumor out. The biopsy had indicated it wasn't malignant. Letting out a large sigh of relief he set his daughter down into the plastic basinet. She'd be asleep for a few more hours. Kate sat on a stool and lie her head on the edge of the basinet.

"How'd it go Jack?"

Jack gave a faint smile and ran a gentle index finger over Megan's curled up left hand.

"Everything went well. Although it's harder to gauge the right dosage of sedative to give an infant. She'll be asleep for a few more hours."

* * *

 _Kate turned her head when she heard Juliet groan. Jack stepping away from his girlfriend and his daughter reached Juliet in four long strides._

" _What's wrong?"_

 _Approaching her, Jack looked at her carefully. She was pale. There hadn't been any need to do a blood transfusion after Cara and Andrew were born. Surprisingly there hadn't been much blood loss. Bleary eyed and dazed Juliet groaned again looking Jack in the eye directly._

" _I don't know, but it hurts…"_

 _Her pleading eyes seemed to penetrate Jack's as he stepped over to her. Puzzled Jack knew there were questions he had to ask._

" _Where does it hurt? Can you tell me where?"_

 _Juliet tried but she was too disoriented and could barely move. Jack got a sinking feeling in his stomach and it became worse as he put on a pair of gloves._

" _Juliet your nose is bleeding. Here, tip your head back."_

 _Jack beat himself up mentally and applied pressure. Tears in her eyes she shook her head._

" _You did this to me!"_

A smaller warm hand was on his shoulder, gently shaking him, rousing him from his sleeping state. Opening his eyes Jack came face to face with Kate.

"Hey Jack. Relax. It's me. You were having a nightmare. You've been having a lot of those lately. You wanna talk about it?"

Jack stared at everything around the room not sure if he was awake or not. Kate pinched his arm to bring him back to reality.

"Ow, what was that for?"

Kate smiled and laughed for a moment.

"To tell you that you're not dreaming. You wanna tell me about your dream?"

Jack's eyes grew big with fear and then his head landed in both hands.

"It was about Juliet. She bled to death and I uh couldn't save her."

Kate placed both hands on his and reassured him. She knew he was pitting himself against his greatest fear: _failure._ His father had always thought he would be a failure. Pulling his hands away from his face Kate peered up into his eyes.

"Jack, Juliet is fine. She's asleep. The twins are fine. It was just a bad dream."

Jack was sure this wasn't just a bad dream. It wasn't just a nightmare.

"It wasn't just a nightmare Kate. I promised her I'd get her off this island too. All she ever wants is to just go home. I gave you, her and everyone else who is still on this island my word. Desmond will be back any day now with help."

Kate wished it would be very soon. This place was taking its toll on all of them.

To Be Continued…


	37. An escape plan

**Chapter 37: An escape plan**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 8/20/15. Date Finished: 8/27/15.

* * *

"When I get my hands on that bug-eyed creep…"

Sawyer didn't finish his sentence. _What does it matter? I'm the one who decided to go tromping off into the jungle alone to save Juliet and my kids._ Kids. The word stuck to him like glue. All he wanted to do was to get back to his family. _Family._ There was another word he'd previously been uncomfortable about. He knew he couldn't live without Juliet, and his kids, they'd wormed their way into his heart the moment they entered the world almost a week ago. Armed with a machete in his left hand and a gun tucked into his pants he sliced through the vines and underbrush in his path. When he finally got beyond it, he found himself standing at the sonic fence. Smiling to himself he chuckled.

"Good thing you gave me the pass-code blondie, or I'd never get through this thing."

Juliet had given Sawyer the code one day in case anything like this were to happen. She'd said to him: _Ben never thinks of changing things, the code has been the same since I got here._ His mind was racing as he put in the code and turned the fence off. It kept going to all the worst things imaginable that could happen. Even when they got back to the mainland no one would believe _anything_ that happened to him anyways. Once on the other side he turned the fence back on. He'd be safe from the Smoke monster now.

* * *

"One step at a time Juliet. You don't have to rush you know."

Frustrated, annoyed and something else she couldn't quite peg down at the moment Juliet gave a sigh and glared at Jack.

"I _can_ walk across a room by myself Jack. It's just going to take me some more time. Now I know how annoying I used to sound to the women I told that very same thing to back on the mainland. When I lived in Miami. They all looked at me like I had three heads."

Jack gave a slight nervous chuckle and waited for a heavy object to be thrown at him. When nothing came at him, he smiled.

"Guess you're not one to throw heavy objects when you get mad or frustrated huh?"

Shaking her head no she grabbed for one of the pillows on her bed and chucked it towards him.

"No but you've gained a pillow."

Ducking Jack let it hit the wall with a thud.

"What's that for?"

Juliet rolled her eyes and continued her trek to the bedroom door.

"That was for being annoying. Can you arrange for Cara and Andrew to be with me? I don't want to go back and forth to the infirmary every few hours."

Jack knew he had to do this for Juliet. He had to keep the twins away from his 'father'. Kate was in the room just down the hall spending some time with Megan. Once he was finished here he'd go and spend some time with his two girls.

"I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, I think you've done enough walking for today. Get some rest."

Reluctantly Juliet followed Jack's orders as her doctor and not a friend.

"Alright Jack, you got it. Please bring my babies back."

Jack nodded and would do his best. As he reached for the door knob he noticed Juliet wince and stand completely still.

"Something else hurt?"

Biting her lip she nodded.

"Yes. My sutures. I think they are infected."

Seriously taking note of the situation, Jack turned the door knob but didn't open the door just yet.

"Ok, let me go back to the infirmary and get some supplies. I'll see if I can make a deal with Ben to bring Cara and Andrew to you and have them stay with you on a permanent basis. We're getting out of here the first chance we get. I'm not letting my 'father' give any of these children that green substance. We don't know what's in it and what the side effects are. Could be any number of things. But I'm not about to let it run through any of their systems. Especially Andrew and Megan."

Growing worried Juliet wrapped a hand around Jack's wrist and her eyes grew wide with fear.

"What's wrong Jack? Did you find something? What is it?"

She knew as a doctor herself all the onslaught of questions that would come about if a child were to suddenly fall ill.

"I'll continue to monitor him. He may develop a respiratory issue. Andrew was stuck for several minutes. I cleared his nose and mouth but on the Apgar scale he was a 5. His heart is healthy and strong, everything else is within the normal range. I'll let you know if anything comes up Juliet. I promise. Need any help getting back into bed?"

Shooting a glare at him she reached for another pillow.

"I'll be fine Jack. Please just bring me my children."

Jack nodded and opened up the door. He came face to face with one of Ben's men and Sawyer held at gunpoint. He stared past Jack and to Juliet who was gripping the bedpost.

"You alright blondie? Where's Andy and Cara?"

Juliet stood her ground and shifted on her feet a little. Ben entered the room as if the house were his own. He'd moved Juliet to her old house so she'd be more comfortable.

"Jenkins, keep Ford locked up here and under armed guard. Bring Juliet and Jack to the infirmary. Jack I want you to administer the compound to Juliet. If you don't Kate will die."

Jack nearly sneered at Ben. _Who the hell did he think he was anyways?_

"Uh uh. Not until I know what's in it. You tell me what's in it and we'll negotiate."

Ben let out a humorless chuckle and held his head high.

"I think I like the new you Jack."

To Be Continued…


	38. Doing Ben's Bidding

**Chapter 38: Doing Ben's bidding**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 8/20/15. Date Finished: 9/10/15.

* * *

Jack didn't like the idea of doing Ben's bidding. But he essentially and literally had a gun pointed at Kate's head. He didn't like the idea of injecting something into Juliet without knowing what was in it. What was the compound exactly? Unless Ben could tell him who his off-island contacts were that acquired the 'vaccine' wouldn't be tested on a human subject, much less Juliet. He glared at Ben, Juliet was exhausted.

"Juliet needs rest Ben. I'm still not giving her that compound unless I know exactly what's in it."

Ben gave a smirk to Jack and stood motionless across from him.

"She'll get her much needed rest, after you've administered the compound."

Eyes darkening Jack examined the green substance in the vial in front of him.

"Not until you tell me what's in _this._ "

Handing Juliet a glass of water he had her lie back on the bed.

"What makes you think I'm going to tell you what's in the vaccine Jack?"

Jack brushed his index and middle finger up against his forehead and kept staring at the compound in his hand.

"What kind of vaccine is it?"

A strange smirk planted itself on Ben's face.

"To protect mother and child from a very dangerous and damaging virus that destroys anything it comes into contact with."

Something was beginning to stir at the bottom of his stomach, and it wasn't anything good.

"Protect them from which virus? There a millions of different kinds out there that we could inadvertently be exposed to every day."

Ben continued to smirk at Jack.

"A cross between a normal flu strain, chicken pox and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever."

Concern and worry filled Jack's features as he stared down at the vial in his hand. _It could be a trick or it could save her life._ Whichever it was, Jack was growing tired of Ben's mind games.

"You're bluffing. For all I know this could be harmless. It could just be food coloring and saline."

His last sentence gave him an idea. He could play Ben at his own game. Just when Jack thought he'd figured Ben out, he'd veer in another direction suddenly to throw him off-track. Shoving Kate in Jack's general direction, Ben reached for the basinets that held Andrew and Cara. Jack knew that if Juliet were a mother bear protecting her cubs Ben would be dead by now. She swallowed by tried to remain calm.

"You touch one hair on either of their heads so help me Ben, nothing on this island will protect you from me. You will have nowhere to hide."

A smirk further crept up Ben's face as he eyed Kate and then saw Megan asleep in the crib in the far corner. Stiffening, Kate moved towards the crib for Megan.

"No you can't have her. Why do you want to take Megan away from Jack and me? Why do you want to take Andrew and Cara away from Juliet and Sawyer?"

Shaking his head as if he were in denial, or maybe something different Ben stared at both Kate and Juliet.

"Trust me when I say this: they will have a much better life here on the island than out there on the mainland. Do you honestly think they will fit in with society? They were born on this island. Here they will be nurtured and their talents encouraged as they develop them. In all honesty, I think Andrew will make a great leader someday."

Juliet didn't want that for her son. She wanted so much better for him. She wanted both her children to see Miami. Her sister Rachel and their cousin Julian.

"No. I will not let my children grow up here. All I have ever wanted to do was leave this godforsaken place and go home. Why won't you let me leave? I am not property and I am leaving this island. You can't keep me here anymore."

Ben seemed almost taken aback by Juliet's fierceness. Her voice held a sharpness. A sharpness he'd seen once before but had intentionally ignored, for his own sake. He was doing this because he was selfish, because he wanted to have Juliet for himself. Despite the fact that she had two children with another man he sort of despised. Jack could see the tension between Juliet and Ben, and after 5 years on this island, he knew he couldn't protect and save everyone. Even though he still did his best to do that very thing.

"She's right Ben. Once rescue comes for us, and it will come, we are _all_ leaving. I am done doing your bidding Ben. I am a doctor and I help people. I fix them and make them better."

Ben made dagger eyes at Jack and then eyed the three children in the room.

"Well Jack, if I recall, you ended up on this island because _you_ needed to be fixed. You are all _flawed._ These three are very special. Now give Juliet that 'vaccine' and we'll make a deal."

Jack with a quick sleight of hand switched out the green 'vaccine' in the vial with saline hoping Ben wouldn't notice. Leaning in towards Juliet he whispered into her ear.

"Don't worry, I don't have any intention of giving you that 'vaccine.' This is just saline. I won't let anything happen to your children. Now just relax and close your eyes. This'll just take a minute."

Juliet not wanted to cause suspicion on Ben's part did as Jack asked and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she heard a frightened shriek come from Kate and Megan begin to cry.

"What did you just do to Megan Ben? What did you just do!? Tell me!?"

Taking Ben by his shirt collar Kate almost threw him against a cabinet.

"I just gave her a vaccine to protect her. She will be perfectly fine."

Jack was having a difficult time keeping his temper in check, but tried to remain calm even in the wake of what Ben had just done.

"How would you know that Ben? Huh? Megan is still recovering from major open-heart surgery to fix a defect in one of her ventricles. There is no way to know what will happen to her if there are side effects. You tell me right now what's in that vaccine. I don't want to sit here all day when you could just tell me what's in it. Now start writing."

From the corner of the doorway just outside the room, the thing wearing Christian Shepard's face gave a smirk and walked away. _Part of his plan had succeeded. It was almost time for part two._

To Be Continued…


	39. Pulled in three different directions

**Chapter 39: Pulled in three different directions**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 9/11/15. Date Finished: 9/16/15.

* * *

Kate bounced a fussy Megan up against her shoulder to get her to calm down. She grew angrier instead and belted out an even louder cry.

"I know baby. I know you're probably very uncomfortable right now. Daddy is going to take very good care of you."

Jack ran a hand over Megan's full head of dark hair to try and calm her, then rubbed her foot with his thumb.

"I gave her some saline to wash her system out. I took a blood sample from her to see if this 'vaccine' is doing anything harmful to her body. Since Ben only gave me a partial list of the elements used in making the 'vaccine' I'm going to have a hard time figuring out what it does exactly. She should be getting sleepy right about now. I gave her something so she can relax."

Closing his mouth and freezing in the spot he was standing in, his eyes roamed over towards the screens that hid Juliet from plain sight. He heard a loud thud and something like glass breaking and a very guilty looking Ben stepped out from behind one of the screens. Two of his fingers were covered in blood. This time Jack couldn't keep his temper in check. He rushed to Juliet who was crumpled in a heap on the floor.

"What the hell did you just do to her Ben? She's having a seizure. You gave her the 'vaccine' didn't you? That's what's all over the floor isn't it?"

Jack stared hard at Ben who looked genuinely frightened. He was painted into an invisible corner in which at the moment he couldn't get out of.

"That… That wasn't supposed to happen! I swear!"

Getting to his feet momentarily, Jack threw a left hook at Ben and he fell to the ground hard. As he was about to give another one to Ben Kate yelled, getting his attention.

"Jack stop! Help Juliet."

Jaw-set in a hard grim line Jack nodded and went over to the nearest sink to wash his hands. Drying his hands and wincing as he pulled on a pair of gloves, he dug through a couple of drawers until he found what he was looking for. Swallowing, he rushed back to Juliet and carefully gave her the much needed medication. Getting down on his knees he turned her onto her side and pulled her head into his lap and tried to keep her calm, but it was more for himself. Only because he knew she couldn't hear him.

"Shh Juliet. You're going to be fine. Just give the Phenobarbital a few minutes."

He felt like he was holding his breath for what seemed like forever. When her body stopped seizing, he relaxed. Sighing he began to hear both Cara and Andrew start to cry. Both he and Kate would have to give them some supplemental formula until Juliet woke. Pulling the pillow from the bed, Jack placed it under Juliet's head. He didn't want to move her to the bed until he was sure she wasn't going to have another seizure. Reaching into the first basinet he took Andrew and cradled him in his right arm. Not jostling him, he reached for his sister and balanced her in the crook of his left arm. Emerging from behind the screen he motioned for Kate to take Cara.

"Here, take Cara. We're doing Juliet a little favor while she's resting. She's not going to be able to feed them right now. She just had a seizure. She'll be sleeping for a while. I should put her on a monitor and get her some oxygen."

Kate gingerly took Cara in her arms and rocked her a bit. Her eyes widened and looked to Ben whose fingers were still trailing blood onto the floor below him.

"Jack tie Ben up. If you don't he'll give the 'vaccine' to Cara and Andrew too. You've already seen what it's done to Megan. Juliet had a bad reaction to it. Who knows what will happen to these two if they are given it. We can't let him get away with hurting anymore innocent lives."

Jack gave Andrew to Kate and found a pair of handcuffs in one of the drawers. Placing one cuff around a chair bolted to the floor, he then proceeded to put the other on his left wrist. Ben's blue eyes pierced Jack's hazel one's as he stared, contemplating his situation.

"I'd really not like to bleed to death Jack. Could you fix my fingers please?"

Sighing Jack rummaged around in one of the drawers to find all the supplies he would need to fix Ben's fingers.

"Did you get this from the glass?"

Ben didn't shake his head no he only stared ahead blankly and blinked.

"No. Juliet bit me."

Jack put the puzzle pieces together. _Was Ben really that stupid?_

"You were trying to help her? You know when you keep someone's airway open during a seizure, never, ever stick your fingers in their mouth. They can't control any of their body functions."

He knew it was pointless to talk to Ben. He only sat on the floor stony-faced as Jack cleaned his wounds. Seeing him wince slightly as he applied the antiseptic, Jack said nothing apology-wise. Ben didn't deserve an apology as far as he was concerned.

"Good to know Jack. Can you fix my fingers or not?"

Nodding silently Jack took a needle and thread and pulled it through the eye of needle.

"This is going to hurt a little."

Looking away, Ben distracted himself with staring at a lone medical text sitting on a table nearly 60 feet away from him. Jack stole a glance at Kate who was trying to calm the two howling children tucked away in each arm. But she knew better. When a newborn was hungry, they would keep crying until they were fed.

"Shh. I know the two of you are hungry. I'll have something for you to eat in just a minute."

Quickly finishing patching Ben up, Jack placed some gauze and tape over his fingers.

"Keep those covered and dry. I'll remove the sutures in three weeks."

Ben stayed quiet and watched as Jack got to his feet. Making his way over to Kate, he scooped Andrew up into his arms and rocked him.

"Let's get you some food buddy. When you have a full tummy you'll sleep better."

Having fixed each of Juliet and Sawyer's children a bottle of formula Jack and Kate went about feeding them. Kate smiled down at Cara as she continued her meal from the bottle.

"There we go. The food's not going anywhere sweetie. Take your time."

Cara cooed and tried to grab at the bottle. Kate finished her thought as she looked over at Jack who sat on a stool.

"Sawyer is going to have his hands full with these two."

Jack chuckled and adjusted the bottle so that Andrew could get more of the formula.

"Wait until Juliet has him change a diaper."

Kate stifled a laugh and saw that Cara was suckling on the bottle less and her eyes were getting heavy.

"I see someone's getting sleepy."

Taking the bottle away Kate set Cara up to her shoulder and patted her back until she heard a burp escape her tiny mouth. Securing the blanket around Cara, Kate took her back over to the plastic basinet next to the bed Juliet was lying in and set her inside. She froze when Cara let out a whine. When she settled Kate let out a silent breath she'd been holding. Jack flashed her a smile when he placed Andrew in the opposite basinet on the left side of the bed. Kate left Jack alone so that he could examine Juliet. He stared at the monitors tracking her vitals and watched her breathing.

"I won't let Ben hurt you anymore Juliet. He's done enough damage."

Jack was going to figure out what was in the vaccine and why Juliet and Megan had a reaction to it.

"You know Jack, I didn't expect Juliet to have the reaction she did. That vaccine was supposed to help her. It was my mistake."

Ben yanked on the chair leg the handcuffs were attached to. He did it even though he knew the chair was bolted to the floor.

"You honestly think Ben that I believe anything you say? That you didn't mean to hurt Juliet with that 'vaccine'? For all I know you could've caused her to go into a coma."

Jack could see Ben was trying not to flinch.

"It was supposed to protect them. Her, Megan, Cara and Andrew. Kate doesn't need it. She has a natural immunity to the virus somehow. Juliet on the other hand, she doesn't without that vaccine she would be worse off than the rest of them. Like I said, it supposed to protect them. The bottom line is this: Kate has a natural immunity. Juliet doesn't."

Staring at Ben in deep thought Jack knew he had to get that 'vaccine' out of Juliet and test it. Ben was the first one he was coming after if he lost his family to this 'vaccine.'

To Be Continued…


	40. Off-island help

**Chapter 40: Off-island help**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 9/17/15. Date Finished: 9/21/15.

* * *

"Why Kate Ben? Why does she have an immunity to this dangerous virus that's out there? How come my daughter, Juliet, and her son and daughter have to be vaccinated? Huh?"

Ben gave a low and almost humorless chuckle.

"You're a doctor Jack. So you know something about genetics. If you need a refresher, there's a rather large medical text over there on the table."

Sometimes Ben gave Jack a headache without even trying too hard. Blowing out a frustrated breath, Jack looked to Megan who was asleep in a crib a couple of feet away from him.

"I don't need that text Ben. Now tell me, who is your contact on the mainland? Can they help us?"

A flicker of hope filled Jack's being as he waited for Ben's answer.

"The man you are looking for is someone who isn't easy to find Jack. I guess you could call him a hermit. I could bring him here to the island, but he has to be convinced of it."

Jack glared at Ben. He hated it when he spoke in riddles. He wished he'd get to the point.

"Convinced to come to the island? You mean like the way we were brought here? I didn't ask to come here in the first place!"

Ben made no attempt to show any emotion. His eyes flicked up to the man standing by the door armed with a rifle.

"Jenkins. I would like you to go and get Ford for me. Bring him here to the infirmary."

* * *

When Juliet woke, she wasn't sure where she was until she heard the steady beeping of a heart monitor next to her. Turning her head, she smiled when she saw Cara in the plastic basinet to the right of her. A tiny arm had snaked its way out of the yellow blanket and was waving around. Wincing, she pushed herself into a sitting position. Reaching into the basinet she cradled Cara in her arms and cooed at her.

"I'm going to get you and your brother out of here Cara. I promise. You getting hungry sweetie? Let me just get situated here. There we go. You have your daddy's eyebrows. That's a good girl. You are going to love Miami Cara. I can't wait for you to meet your Aunt Rachel and your cousin Julian. Miami is a lot like the island. Except for the fact that there are 400,000 people and cars and all sorts of other things."

Juliet was occupied and didn't notice Sawyer standing over by the screens that served as an entrance to where her bed was. A smile spread across his face as he watched Juliet and his little girl bonding.

"I think she has her mama's nose. What do you think blondie?"

A tired smile came to Juliet's face and she nodded. She could see Cara was nodding off and carefully pulled her away from her chest. Letting out an angry wail Cara's little arms snaked their way out of the blanket and they waved in every direction.

"Hey sweetie. I'm sorry. Mommy thought you were finished. Come here."

Andrew started to whimper in the other basinet next to the left side of the bed. Juliet managed a quick glance over at Andrew and then flicked her eyes over to Sawyer.

"James could you please change Andy? The longer you wait, the more upset he'll be. There's fresh cloths over there. Have Kate help you if you get stuck."

At one point, Juliet would've been extremely jealous of Kate for helping Sawyer with anything. But now that they each had their own family, she didn't think anything of it. Reaching into the basinet he picked up his son who began wailing. Carrying him out from behind the screens he looked Kate in the eye. She smiled and walked towards him.

"Need a hand in changing him Sawyer?"

Confusion crossed Sawyer's face and he nodded.

"Thanks freckles. I don't know the first thing about changing diapers. Come to think of it, this is the longest I've ever held my boy."

Kate frowned but then went about undoing the cloth around Andy that was serving as a diaper.

"You'll get the hang of it. I didn't know the first thing about changing diapers when Megan was first born…"

Sawyer knew this was a painful subject for her to talk about, so he changed the tone of the conversation and flicked his eyes up at Megan who was standing up in the crib and patting her chubby little hands against Jack's cheeks.

"Well look at your girl now. She's growing like a weed. You and the doc are gonna have to find her some new clothes."

Kate smiled as she thought about how lucky she was to have her family. Despite all the bad that had happened over the last year, things were finally looking up for the couple and their daughter. That is until Ben had intervened. Handing the dirty cloth to Sawyer she watched for his reaction.

"Andy, what else is your mama feeding you?"

Kate shook her head and stifled a small laugh.

"Throw what's in it away and it'll have to be washed. You'll have twice as much laundry now. Don't worry, it gets easier. You have all of us back at camp to help you out."

Sawyer nodded and scooped Andy up in his arms and rocked him. Kate continued her thought as she watched Sawyer with his son.

"You are so good with him. I think Juliet changed you for the better James."

A tiny grin crossed Sawyer's face as he watched his son nod off into a peaceful slumber. Kate left Sawyer and made her way back to the crib where Megan was holding up her chubby little arms. As Sawyer made his way back towards the screens that hid Juliet and Cara from view, he heard Jack's voice behind them. Stepping behind the screens Sawyer's eyes darkened a little.

"Well geez doc, why don't you give the woman some privacy?"

Jack gave Sawyer a hard to read stare.

"Relax Sawyer. I was just checking her heart. Cara's asleep in the basinet."

Now it was Juliet's turn to intervene.

"It's fine James. Besides, it's not like he hasn't seen any of this before."

Sawyer's ears perked up and his face paled a bit at Jack's statement.

"What's wrong with her heart doc?"

Jack shook his head and took the earpieces of the stethoscope from his ears.

"Not a thing. I was just correlating with the machine. She's on monitors and oxygen because she had a seizure. A reaction caused by the green substance Ben calls a 'vaccine'. He says it's supposed to protect her from a cross between a normal flu strain, chicken pox and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever."

For the briefest of moments, Sawyer looked frightened and Jack couldn't blame him. He lowered his voice so that only Jack could hear him.

"That son of a bitch didn't give any of that stuff to my kids did he?"

Shaking his head no, Jack frowned but tried to reassure Sawyer.

"No. But he was going to. Juliet and Megan had bad reactions to it. He says he can bring someone who can cure them to the island. Kate has a type of immunity to this virus. But Juliet, your children, and Megan do not."

Sawyer looked ready to pummel a handcuffed Ben. Jack tried to reason with him.

"Sawyer, if this man can help us, we have to give Ben the benefit of the doubt regardless of what he's done to us in the last few years and recently. He says he's trying to help, maybe we should listen."

Sawyer narrowed his eyes at Jack and looked at him as if he had four heads.

"Let me get this straight doc, you want us to trust Linus to get some scientist to the island just so he can help Juliet, Megan, Cara and Andy? Nuh uh. No way. You and Juliet can figure it out can't ya?"

Jack shook his head.

"Juliet and I don't know what these elements are. We've never seen them before."

Ben gave Jack a smirk and adjusted his position on the floor. It wasn't very comfortable but it would have to do.

"The man that will be able to save them Jack, his name is Mark Amberson. He's the Jonas Salk of the 21st century. The only way we can contact him is by going to The Flame. If you would kindly undo these handcuffs I can be there and back in two days. Three tops."

Jack shook his head no and stood his ground.

"No Ben. You find some other way to communicate with him."

Ben kept the smirk firmly planted on his face as he ducked his head towards the ground.

"A promise is a promise Jack. Doctor Amberson isn't an easy man to convince, but he is one of the brightest minds out there. Look at Juliet, Jacob picked her because she's intelligent, and she could help solve our problem with the pregnant women here on the island."

Sawyer felt his defenses kick in and he looked over the screens hiding Juliet.

"Now wait just a minute there Benny-boy. Those nine women who lost their lives, it wasn't Juliet's fault. It's the islands. Problems can't be solved overnight."

Ben brushed off Sawyer's remarks and looked him straight in the eye.

"He is the only one that can save your children and your future wife."

Sawyer didn't want to appear desperate but there didn't look to be any other choices right at the moment.

"Thanks for coming on such short notice Doctor Amberson. You're time here will be well-spent I assure you. Now who would you like to examine first and take a blood sample from?"

Doctor Mark Amberson was a tall man, jet black hair and round rimmed glasses and he almost seemed arrogant at first glance. All business Doctor Anderson looked towards Juliet, who was clearly visible. Jack had taken away the screens.

"I would like to examine Doctor Burke first if that's possible?"

Nodding Ben strode over towards Juliet who was talking to Jack. Jack looked up when he saw the two men approaching. Sticking his right hand out for Doctor Amberson to shake, the man shook hands with Jack stiffly.

"Doctor Jack Shephard. Nice to meet you Doctor Amberson. Three days ago Juliet suffered a gran mal seizure as a result of having been administered a dose of your vaccine. I gave her an injection of Phenobarbital to stop the seizure. In the last two days she's complained of no feeling in her feet and both of the calves of her legs. I've done a couple of x-rays and there doesn't seem to be anything impinging upon her spine."

Doctor Amberson nodded and added his two cents worth.

"I see. What is your specialty Doctor Shephard?"

Jack wasn't sure he liked this man's attitude. _Was I really like that when we first got to the island?_ Sitting up a bit straighter, Jack tried not to fiddle with the stethoscope draped over his neck.

"I'm a spinal surgeon."

Doctor Amberson made a noise in his throat and looked straight at Juliet.

"Interesting Ben. That you chose a fertility doctor to try my vaccine on."

Juliet's heart sank and she could feel that Sawyer was becoming angry in the chair next to the bed. Ben fidgeted next to Doctor Amberson.

"You gave specific instructions to administer the vaccine to women and children. You didn't say anything about women who had recently given birth or who were pregnant."

Heart sinking further Juliet felt her blood begin to boil.

"I gave birth two weeks ago."

A deepening frown appeared on Doctor Amberson's face as he stepped closer to Juliet.

"I won't know what effects it's had on your body until I get a blood sample from you and run it. Tell me Doctor Burke what is this?"

Doctor Amberson had taken one of the vials of her serum from a refrigeration unit in the far corner of the room.

"That is my serum. I developed it. It was designed to help the women on this island survive the late stages of pregnancy. For some reason the problem begins at conception and eventually the mother's immune system turns on the fetus they are carrying. None of the women I've tried to help made it past their second trimester. They all died. Until Claire Littleton and Kate Austen. Those two were my control cases. I myself am part of that group. My serum saved my life and my son and daughter. Without it I wouldn't be here. So yes, you have my permission to examine me and take a blood sample."

Sawyer became worried. He wasn't sure he trusted this new doctor yet. Lowering his voice so that only Juliet could hear him, he spoke softly.

"Are you sure you're ok with this blondie? There's still time to figure something out. You and the doc can figure this out…"

Juliet shook her head and squeezed his hand to try and comfort him.

"This is our best chance James. I would love to be able to feel something below my knees and able to be mobile again. I can't even move my legs right now. Who knows what this vaccine is doing to the rest of my body?"

Sawyer still felt on edge, but he knew to trust Juliet with all he was worth. He'd finally found someone to love him for who he was.

"You got it blondie. But we should have Jack working closely with this new guy, I'm getting some weirdo vibes from him."

To Be Continued…


	41. Some things must be undone

**Chapter 41: Some things must be undone**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Lost characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 9/22/15. Date Finished: 11/12/15.

* * *

Megan was asleep in the crib in the far corner of the room as Kate took a seat in a chair next to Juliet's bed.

"I'm sorry this is happening to you Juliet. Sometimes I think this island has it in for us."

Juliet grimaced and looked Kate in the eye. Sighing she spoke.

"That's what I've been trying to tell Jack. Sometimes I think the island is trying to punish us. All of us. It's not your fault this is happening to me or Megan. It just happened. Sometimes in life we just get a series of bad luck streaks. Maybe Doctor Amberson can fix his mistake. Could you get Jack for me Kate? Sorry to cut our conversation short, it's just something hurts."

Swallowing Kate nodded and went over towards Jack and whispered in his ear.

"Jack, Juliet needs you. She says somethings hurting her."

Getting up from the microscope station and leaving Doctor Amberson to his work, Jack strode over towards Juliet. He found that her face was flush and she was sweating. He looked her in the eye and spoke.

"Hey. What's wrong? Where does it hurt?"

She tried to pull the sheet back far enough so that Jack could see, but her arms moved clumsily and it was just easier for Jack to do it himself. He tried not to grimace as he saw how bloated part of her stomach and her abdomen were.

"That's not normal. This has to be an ongoing reaction to Doctor Amberson's vaccine. When did you first notice this?"

Closing her eyes she winced and then opened them again.

"A few minutes ago. Am I running a fever?"

Doctor Amberson interrupted Juliet and stared at Jack.

"It's affecting her immune system. Soon that oxygen mask is the only thing that will help her to breathe. The bloating and inflammation will continue. Eventually it'll interfere with the function of every one of her vital organs before they shut down."

Eyes widening, Jack was ready to pounce on Doctor Amberson.

"Do you mean to tell me, one wrong element in your vaccine is causing the virus?"

Giving a frustrated sigh Doctor Amberson nodded and turned his attention back to the microscope in front of him. Jack finished his thought.

"You've just exposed all of us then!"

Doctor Amberson shook his head and looked up from the microscope once more.

"No. Women and children are only affected. Men seem immune to it, and Kate of course."

Kate had scooped up a sleeping Megan into her arms and placed her onto her shoulder. She moved her tiny head and turned it to the left, lying it down on her mother's shoulder again. Bottom lip beginning to quiver, Kate looked at Doctor Amberson.

"My daughter's very sick isn't she?"

Doctor Amberson looked up and Jack thought he could see a flicker of sympathy cross his face.

"Yes. I'm working to correct it though. I've asked Ben to acquire all the elements I need to make a new vaccine. Some things must be undone, and this is one of them."

Jack went back to Juliet and looked her in the eye.

"I can get you something for the pain. It'll help you sleep. Is there anything else I can do for you to make you more comfortable?"

Juliet nodded and used her arms to shift herself into a more comfortable position.

"My back hurts. I think I have a uti."

Sighing Jack sympathized with her.

"I'll get you some juice. It's too bad we don't have any cranberries. I'll change that catheter out and get you a fresh one. I'll need to check for bedsores on your back when I come back. You've been in the same position for quite some time now."

A frustrated sighed escaped her lips.

"You know I hate being the center of attention Jack. It makes me feel more isolated."

Jack nodded and let his mind go over Juliet's statement.

"You are my patient Juliet. That makes you my priority. You may think you're the center of attention, but that's not the case. We'll get through this. Doctor Amberson said he'd need at least three or four more days to come up with a replacement vaccine to counteract the effects this one is having on you."

Juliet twisted the sheets that were covering her on the bed. She hadn't felt this nervous in a long time. Sawyer planted himself in the chair and took Juliet's hands in his own.

"Everything's going to be ok blondie. You'll see."

Jack returned with a cup of juice and changed out the catheter for a new one. Downing the fresh squeezed juice, Juliet winced as Jack and Sawyer helped turn her onto her side.

"These are some pretty irritated bedsores. I'm going to clean these out and put fresh dressings on them alright?"

Juliet stayed still as Jack cleaned out the wounds on her back.

"You know Jack, I wanted Andy and Cara to be born on the mainland in Miami. I wanted them to be born in a hospital with a good team of doctors and anesthetic that wasn't expired!"

Jack didn't take offense to what Juliet said. He only nodded and tried to smile.

"I know you want to get off this island just as badly as I do Juliet. We all do. Doctor Amberson and I are working non-stop to fix what's going on with you and Megan. He thinks that maybe some of the antibodies from Kate might help reverse this. But neither of us can be sure until we test it out. I'm going to give you something to help you sleep ok? Everything is going to work out. You'll see."

Before Juliet could ask what Jack meant exactly, her eyes became heavy and sleep enveloped her like a warm blanket. The island wasn't going to take her life, she wouldn't let it. She was going to get away from here and see her sister and her nephew. Her children wouldn't have to grow up on this godforsaken rock.

To Be Continued…


	42. Trial and error

**Chapter 42: Trial and error**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the LOST characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 12/18/15. Date Finished: 2/4/16.

* * *

Juliet bit her lip. Everything lately had become trial and error. But she trusted Jack. He reassured her that everything was going according to plan, at least so far. She was more concerned about Megan and her children at the moment. Jack parted the screens momentarily and then shut them again.

"How did you sleep last night?"

Blinking her eyes, Juliet swallowed and then answered.

"Like crap. Let me guess, you're here to take more blood from me?"

Nodding, Jack took her arm and tied the rubber tubing around it.

"This'll only take a minute. So, how's your appetite?"

Juliet rolled her eyes at Jack and returned her gaze up to the ceiling.

"Poor. But you know that Jack. Whatever this virus is Jack, it's affecting my appetite. I might be able to stomach some plain oatmeal. Worked wonders when I was pregnant with these two."

Her eyes roved over the two sleeping children in the plastic basinets and her smile grew. She could see that Cara was wiggling around in the basinet. Cara was on the verge of letting out a scream. Juliet knew that Cara wasn't hungry, she'd been fed already. Changed also. She probably just wanted to be held.

"Baby girl, I'm right here."

Juliet was able to move her upper body, but it would take several more injections of the new vaccine in order for her to gain full control of her motor functions. She finished her thought and held out her arms for her daughter.

"You're cold aren't you sweetie?"

Jack carefully scooped Cara up into his arms and rocked her for almost a full minute before placing her in Juliet's arms.

"Sometimes they just want to be held. In Cara's case, she just wants to be near you. She's still adjusting to the temperature out here in the world."

Juliet draped a blanket over herself and listened to Cara's happy cooing. Sometimes she felt like she spent so little time, at least lately getting to know her daughter. She was more determined than ever to get off the island with her kids. James too. This was no place to raise a child. Or children. Something told her though, that it would be another few years before she left this island for good.

"You know Jack, I owe you. You saved my life. You saved Cara and Andrew. I wouldn't have survived if it hadn't been for you and the help of my serum. It's because of you that my children are healthy. Do you really think that this vaccine will work?"

Jack nodded but his eyes shifted to the blanket concealing Cara.

"It's a trial and error situation right now Juliet. But my main focus is on getting you better. Megan too, then get these two vaccinated. I know you don't have much of an appetite right now; I'll work on getting you some plain oatmeal. Hopefully you can keep that down. What about Cara? How's her appetite?"

Managing to shake her head, Juliet maneuvered so that she could lift the blanket. Jack took a peek under it and found Cara nestled and curled up against Juliet's chest. Every day she was less wrinkly and was taking on more of Juliet than Sawyer.

"Actually that's what I was going to ask you about Jack. She seems to be having a little trouble nursing."  
Frowning, Jack scooted the stool closer to the bed and pushed the blanket back a little further.

"It's ok sweetie go with 'uncle' Jack."

Cara let out an angry wail as Jack carefully took her into his arms. Juliet put a hand over her mouth and watched as Jack placed her onto an exam table next to the bed.

"Has she had any shortness of breath? Do you notice her wheezing when she breathes?"

Juliet shook her head no and continued to watch Jack.

"No. She's actually having trouble opening her mouth. I know you can't see it right now because she's screaming at the top of her lungs, but it's there. Trust me Jack."

* * *

"She's at least sleeping through the night now."

Kate sat on a stool next to the crib Megan was asleep in. She smiled up to him and tugged on his hand. Pulling him down to her level, she leaned in for a kiss. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she let the kiss deepen for a moment and then pulled away.

"You need to shave."

Jack let out a chuckle and reached a hand through the slates in the crib and placed it on Megan's tiny foot. She stirred and then settled again.

"Do I? You don't like the 5 o'clock shadow look? We're close Kate. Doctor Amberson just has a few more tweaks to make to this vaccine and it'll be ready to go. Everything's going to be ok."

Kate's eyes wandered over to the basinet containing Cara.

"How's Cara doing?"

Jack shook his head at Kate and ran a hand over Megan's tiny head.

"You always ask that, but you know I can't talk about it."

Ben sat and smirked from his spot on the floor. He was still handcuffed to the chair leg that was bolted to the floor.

"You know Jack, when this is all over, I'm still going to take Megan. She'll get a good education on this island. I assure you. Cara and Andrew will join her. With time so will Cody and Grace."

Jack moved from the spot he'd been sitting in next to the crib and made it to Ben in three long strides.

"You don't have any rights to any of these children Ben. So just watch your back. We'll strike when you least expect it."

Ben only continued to smirk and tried crossing his arms over his chest.

"I do believe I still have the upper hand in the situation Jack. You're on my turf. These barracks belong to _us._ "

To Be Continued…


	43. Isolation

**Chapter 43: Isolation**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the LOST characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 5/17/15. Date Finished: 3/13/17.

* * *

Juliet didn't like being isolated. Jack was sure him and Doctor Amberson had everything figured out. She wanted to be with Andy and Cara. They were her children. Her reason for living and getting off this rock.

"Jack?"

Her hands were shaking. _Perhaps another side effect of the vaccine?_ She'd been having trouble moving again, which wasn't a good sign. Swallowing had become difficult too. Jack was at her side instantly, with a concerned look on his face.

"Juliet what's wrong?"

Juliet tried making a gesture towards her throat. Her movements weren't graceful at all and she felt weak.

"My throat…"

Jack let his eyes follow the movements of her throat, she was swallowing an awful lot. Furrowing his eyebrows together, Jack swung into action, rifling through drawers to find the supplies needed to help with Juliet's situation.

"Juliet, can you breathe?"

His brain on overdrive saw that she was having difficulty taking a breath. Nothing seemed to register with her, but she found her eyes landing on the two basinets her children were in. _I need to get off this damn island! For both of you!_ Jack turned when he heard Doctor Amberson shout from his seat closest to the door.

"Ah ha! Gotcha! The missing ingredient is Baking Soda! Give me a couple of minutes Doctor Shephard, and then we can administer the new vaccine to your daughter, Doctor Burke and her children."

Turning back to Juliet, Jack injected her with a quick dose of epinephrine. A coughing fit grabbed a hold of her before she could finally get a breath in.

"Breathe Juliet. Just breathe."

Finally, able to get a breath in, Juliet opened her eyes and nodded. She tried to speak, but Jack put a hand on hers and stopped her.

"Don't talk Juliet. Just rest."

Juliet stayed quiet and five minutes later Doctor Amberson came towards her with a syringe filled with clear liquid. She guessed it was the new vaccine. Bracing herself, she felt the alcohol wipe on her arm and then a slight pinch.

"There. All done Doctor Burke."

Jack looked back at Doctor Amberson once more and nodded at him.

"How long before we know it works?"

Doctor Amberson went around the room distributing the vaccine to the others who needed it.

"We should know in about four to five hours."

* * *

One week later

"Ba…"

Kate smiled down at Megan and kissed her forehead.

"Can you say mama Megan? Mama."

Megan stuck her fingers in her mouth and giggled. Kate pointed at Jack as he sat down in the sand under the palm tree with them.

"Look, there's daddy."

Clapping her tiny hands, Megan reached for Jack. Picking her up, Jack bounced her on his knee and tickled her. Her tiny laughter was infectious. Jack liked hearing the sound coming from his little girl. It was much better than hearing her cry. In some ways, he was surprised Ben had let them go. He wasn't sure he understood his strange fixation on Juliet. But he had let them go. It was only a matter of time though before they came back for them again.

To Be Continued…


	44. Some down time

**Chapter 44: Some down time**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the LOST characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 3/14/17. Date Finished: 7/6/17.

* * *

"It feels too quiet Jack. I don't think the islands ever been this still."

Jack was distracted playing peek-a-boo with Megan to notice Kate was speaking to him.

"What was that?"

Kate sighed and rolled her eyes, beginning to play with Megan's sandy feet.

"I said the island feels too still. I don't hear any animals."

Jack stopped playing with Megan for a moment and looked Kate in the eye.

"Maybe there's a storm coming?"

Kate looked outside the tent and frowned.

"No. It's something else. I don't know what it is."

Jack looked up towards the entrance to the tent when he saw Juliet appear with Cara in her arms.

"Hey. I hope I'm not interrupting. Was wondering if you two would like to come out for a walk with us."

Kate stood up and accepted Juliet's offer.

"Sure. Come on Jack. We haven't been for a walk for awhile."

Taking Megan in his arms, Jack got to his feet. Walking outside the tent, he joined Juliet, Sawyer and Cara and Andrew. As they made their way down the beach, Jack struck up a conversation with Juliet.

"Cara and Andy are looking very healthy. They eating ok?"

Juliet nodded and looked at Megan, blowing a kiss towards her.

"I've got two barracudas. They both eat like horses. I think they have their father's appetite."

Adjusting Cara in the blanket over her shoulder, Juliet kept walking, watching the waves along the way. Jack wondered how long it would be until Desmond came back to the island with help.

"Its too bad we can't just sail out of here whenever we want."

Kate answered before Jack did.

"Yeah, but Juliet said we needed to find a shipping lane for that. We don't know which direction to go without a compass."

Jack looked at both women and sighed.

"Well, I try to look at it this way, we've been on a permanent vacation for almost 5 years. The view is nice, but I don't think our kids should have to grow up here. When we finally do get rescued, the real world will feel a little too loud."

This made Juliet chuckle.

"You think being out of the real world for five years is bad Jack, try being out of it for nearly ten years. I'm sure that technology has changed a bit since I've been out there. I know for a fact that my clothes are out of style now, but its all I have. That and I have my family. We're together at least, and that's what makes it bearable living on this cursed rock."

Jack shook his head and gave a dry laugh.

"You sound like Sawyer."

This solicited another laugh, this time from Sawyer himself.

"Well, I guess that's why we were 'made for each other' ain't it?"

Juliet wanted to resist correcting Sawyer, but she did it anyways.

"It's not 'ain't it', it's 'isn't it'."

Sawyer rolled his eyes at Juliet and shifted Andy in his arms.

"Geez blondie, you don't have to be such a wise..."

Putting a hand up to stop him, Juliet shook her head.

"Don't even say it James. There are children present."

Jack gave another laugh, but this time at the pair of them.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say the two of you were already married."

To Be Continued…


	45. The island tree house

**Chapter 45: The island tree house**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the LOST characters. But I do own: Megan, Gracie, Cody, Cara and Andrew. Date Started: 7/6/17. Date Finished: 7/9/17.

* * *

6 years later…

"Wait! Maybe we shouldn't go up there! It's kinda high. Megan wait! Cody

your too little! Megan, why'd we bring Cody with us? Aunt Kate and Uncle

Jack are going to kill you. We're not even supposed to be out here!"

Cara had followed Megan on a whim from the beach into the jungle. She'd gone when Juliet had her back turned to her. Megan didn't realize the danger she had put all three of them in.

"Relax ok. Let's see what's inside the tree house. I'll go first. Then you send Cody up."

Cara huffed and looked around her nervously. Megan looked down with stormy green eyes and motioned for her to bring Cody up.

"Ok, send Cody up."

Cara sending Cody up first was right behind him. He'd reached the top and she was on the last step when she heard a crackling of splintered wood. The fall alone was pretty high. Landing on the ground with a loud thud, Cara screamed and called out for Juliet.

"MOMMY!?"

Megan made sure that Cody was safe inside the tree house before she peaked outside of it.

"Cara!"

Megan carefully climbed down and saw that Cara had stopped crying. Running as fast as she could she got back to the beach. She came back with all four adults. A guilty expression was planted on her face. Jack and Juliet stepped closer to Cara and leaned down on the jungle floor. James tried to scoop Cara up in his arms, but Juliet put a hand on his.

"Don't move her James."

James felt a little hurt by Juliet's words. _Why the hell not? I blame the damn tree._ Juliet turned to Megan, brief anger showing on her pretty face.

"Megan, what happened?"

Megan fidgeted next to the palm tree. Pointing up to the tree she explained everything.

"It's my fault Aunt Juliet. I thought it would be fun if we could play up in that tree house. But Cara said it was too high. I told her it would be fun and she came up anyways."

Megan realized her mother was standing off to the side and saw the expression on her face.

"Megan where's your brother?"

She pointed up and saw Cody pop his head out of the entrance.

"Up there."

Kate taking matters into her own hands began to scale the palm tree. She was going to get Cody down from there. Juliet in the meantime looked back at Megan for answers.

"What happened Megan? I want the whole story."

Megan could hear the serious sharp tone in Juliet's voice and knew not to argue.

"She was on the last step and was gonna climb into the tree house with me and Cody. But the piece of wood broke and she fell. It was pretty far down. She was crying when I left. Is she gonna be ok?"

Juliet shook her head and looked down at Cara's still form. Worried eyes looked over at Jack.

"Jack, how is she?"

Jack was careful with Cara as he examined her.

"She's got a pretty bad bump on the back of her head, bleeding a little. We'll have to make a stretcher for her. She can't be moved on anything but that right now."

James moved in and scooped Juliet into his arms.

"Everything's gonna be alright blondie. Cara's gonna bounce back."

Jack looked at Megan with a stern expression and shook his head.

"I don't want you coming out here anymore is that understood?"

Megan swallowed and then spoke.

"Daddy I'm sorry…"

Jack shook his head.

"Tell your cousin you're sorry. She may be paralyzed for life because of how far she fell. She is 6 years old."

Beginning to cry, Megan looked at the broken wood a few feet from where Cara was lying.

"Cara I'm sorry. It was a stupid idea to come out here."

Megan stood back and watched as Juliet and her father made a stretcher for Cara. By now, Kate had come back down with Cody. All the while, Gracie had stood quietly watching with wide eyes. Cara had opened her eyes and was looking at Juliet.

"Keep your eyes on mommy baby girl. I'm right here."

Cara had wide eyes as she looked at Juliet.

"Mama, you can't carry me. I'm too heavy. What about the baby?"

Juliet smoothed some hair from Cara's eyes.

"Don't you worry about the baby. We're fine. Besides, daddy and Uncle Jack are gonna carry you. Everything is gonna be just fine. I promise."

Jack steadied her on her feet as she swayed a bit.

"Contraction?"

Nodding, Juliet lowered herself onto a rock next to the stretcher, taking a breath in. Cara now had a serious look on her face and tears in her eyes.

"Mama, what's a 'traction?"

Reigning in the pain and blowing through it, she waited until it stopped before she answered Cara.

"A contraction is something mommy's have right before a baby is born."

Cara was curious, but Juliet didn't think she was quite old enough for the specifics so she was keeping it simple.

"Oh."

Smoothing more hair out of Cara's eyes, Juliet tried to keep her calm.

"Are you comfortable baby girl?"

Cara was quiet as Jack and Sawyer carried her to the medical station. They couldn't go back to the beach until they knew she was stable enough. Juliet had followed next to them. She hadn't had anymore contractions, so she pushed forward. Kate had taken the rest of the kids back to the beach. As they descended the stairs of the medical station, Jack looked at Juliet seriously and gestured towards a stool in the operating room.

"Juliet sit down. You look like you could use a rest."  
Cara suddenly looked afraid, but Juliet put her fears to rest.

"Don't be scared baby girl. Mommy and Uncle Jack are going to make you all better ok?"

Tears were in her eyes and she looked to Jack.

"Uncle Jack? Is it gonna hurt?"

Cara's tiny bottom lip was trembling. Juliet suddenly saw herself at that age, crying because she had broken her leg falling off the swing set at school.

"Your mom and I gotta make sure nothing's broken ok?"

Juliet watched as Cara's eyes got heavy, then waited until her breathing evened out.

"Just gave her something so she can sleep."

Staying seated on the stool, Juliet checked Cara over and frowned. Turning to Jack she spoke.

"Jack, her backside is soaking wet. I'm hoping she just had an accident and isn't leaking spinal fluid."

A frown was now stuck on Jack's face and he pulled on an extra pair of gloves, carefully helping Juliet turn Cara over. The two of them lifting up Cara's shirt got a look at her back.

"I won't know how bad the damage is until I get in there. Juliet will you help me?"

Juliet nodded but stayed seated on the stool.

"Only if James can stay and massage my lower back. It's killing me."

Jack pointed to Sawyer.

"He can stay if he wears the proper clothing. This is an operating room."

It took them nearly forty minutes to get everything ready. Juliet held the suction as Jack looked for the damage. She kept her eyes on what she was doing, but her attention was momentarily on Sawyer.

"A little lower James. Yeah, right there."

Jack turned his attention to Juliet without taking his eyes off what he was doing.

"How's her pressure?"

Juliet glanced at the monitor off to the side.

"Stable. 130/88. Stable on the vent and on one hundred percent oxygen. Sedated and comfortable."

Jack took a quick look at Juliet and then back down at what he was doing.

"Thank you for the check-in Juliet. Just keep an eye on those monitors. We don't want her to crash."

A pit formed in Juliet's stomach. Cara had been a relatively healthy child up until the accident today.

"Jack how is it in there?"

Jack spoke while he continued fixing Cara's dural sac.

"Just stitching up her dural sac. There was some spinal fluid leaking, but I've almost got it fixed. Give me a few more minutes and then we'll close up."

Juliet swallowed and felt tears in her eyes.

"Will she be able to walk?"

As Jack finished up, he sighed.

"We won't know until she wakes up. Even then there are some unknowns. This island can only do so much."

Juliet hoped that Jack's words rang true.

To Be Continued…


	46. The island heals

**Chapter 46: The island heals**

Author: ZeusFluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the LOST characters. But I do own a few originals. Date Started: 7/18/17. Date Finished: 7/29/17.

* * *

The island heals. That's what Juliet was led to believe. But now she wasn't so certain. Certainty was a big indicator in her line of work. Kate felt absolutely guilty about what had happened with Cara because of Megan. So she was doing everything she could to make things right, at least in her mind.

"I can get that for you Juliet. Do you need some help?"

Juliet glanced at Kate who was at the entrance to her and Sawyer's tent.

"Help me get her up, she's getting heavy."

Kate obliged and helped Juliet sit Cara up. Cara looked straight at Kate and smiled.

"Hi Aunt Kate."

Kate ran a hand through Cara's golden locks of curly hair.

"Hi little bird. How are you feeling?"

Cara yawned and her mother tested her reflexes.

"A little tired."

Juliet was frowning. Kate knew it was time to send Jack in. Making sure Cara was comfortable first, Kate went to the entrance of the tent and called over to Jack.

"Jack? Juliet needs you."

Jack came striding over and Kate left to tend to her children.

"Jack, her reflexes are impaired and she's got almost no muscle tone in her legs. Look how thin they are!"

Jack took a seat on the edge of the bed and put a hand on Juliet's shoulder.

"Juliet look at me. No one expects her to regain her fine motor skills over night. Right now, we'll just have to wait and see. The island will do the rest."

Juliet looked at Jack like he had three heads. Shaking her head in disagreement, she smoothed some hair from Cara's face.

"Ok Jack answer me this: If we were home, she'd need 24 hour care, not to mention the millions of dollars it would cost just for her care alone. I don't think I can go through that."

Jack was trying to be reassuring, but Juliet wasn't having it.

"I think when we get back Juliet, you'll have more than enough to cover the costs of her care, should she need it. Oceanic owes us."

Juliet shook her head no and pushed another strand of hair from Cara's face.

"No Jack. Oceanic isn't giving me anything. All that money goes to James. He's entitled to it. Not me. I was kidnapped and brought here by submarine. You all got here by accident."

Jack could see the frustration written all over the pretty blonde's face.

"We'll figure this out Juliet. Let's not panic."

Jack wasn't giving up on Cara, but he could see Juliet was strained. He carefully took over for her when her hand went to her back. Sitting back in the sand, Juliet blew out a breath and looked to Jack.

"I think I may have strained my back."

Cara shifted her eyes and gave a worried look to her mother.

"Mommy? Are you ok?"

Juliet nodded her head and closed her eyes for a moment.

"I'm ok baby. You rest."

Jack propped Cara up on a blanket and an old airline pillow. Placing his hand on Juliet's shoulder he asked a question.

"Where's Sawyer?"

Opening her eyes, Juliet blew out another breath.

"He went fishing with Jin. He won't be back until dark."

Sitting still was what she needed to do right now.

"Contractions?"

Juliet nodded and looked Jack in the eye.

"Yes. On and off for the last five or six minutes."

Jack kept his hand on her shoulder.

"Could just be Braxton and Hicks Juliet. Why don't we just wait this out. I need you to stay as still as possible ok?"

Juliet knew that she was being emotional, but the island wasn't letting go of her that easy.

"Jack, you know the island won't let us go home that easily. I've already tried. It's almost killed me several times already. I just don't know how we can get around all this. I need your help Jack. I'm not delivering this baby today. I can't."

Jack looked into Juliet's eyes and gave her a confident smile.

"I'll help you Juliet. You have nothing to worry about."

Juliet had everything to worry about though. The baby hadn't moved in at least the last couple of hours. She was worried.

To Be Continued…


End file.
